THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


A  LIST  OF  THE  ELSIE  BOOKS  AND 
OTHER  POPULAR  BOOKS 

BY 

MARTHA    FINLEY 

ELSIE  DINSMORE. 

ELSIE'S  HOLIDAYS  AT  ROSELANDS. 
ELSIE'S  GIRLHOOD. 

ELSIE'S  WOMANHOOD. 
ELSIE'S  MOTHERHOOD. 

ELSIE'S  CHILDREN. 
ELSIE'S  WIDOWHOOD. 
GRANDMOTHER  ELSIE. 

ELSIE'S  NEW  RELATIONS. 
ELSIE  AT  NANTUCKET. 
THE  TWO  ELSIES. 

ELSIE'S  KITH  AND  KIN. 
ELSIE'S  FRIENDS  AT  WOODBURN. 
CHRISTMAS  WITH  GRANDMA  ELSIE. 
ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 
ELSIE  YACHTING  WITH  THE  RAYMONDS. 
ELSIE'S  VACATION. 

ELSIE  AT  VIAMEDE. 
ELSIE  AT  ION. 

ELSIE  AT  THE  WORLD'S  FAIR. 
ELSIE'S  JOURNEY  ON  INLAND  WATERS. 
ELSIE  AT  HOME. 
ELSIE  ON  THE  HUDSON. 
ELSIE  IN  THE  SOUTH. 
ELSIE'S  YOUNG  FOLKS. 
ELSIE'S  WINTER  TRIP. 
ELSIE  AND  HER  LOVED  ONES. 


MILDRED  KEITH. 

MILDRED  AT  ROSELANDS. 
MILDRED'S  MARRIED  LIFE. 
MILDRED  AND  ELSIE. 
MILDRED  AT  HOME. 

MILDRED'S  BOYS  AND  GIRLS. 
MILDRED'S  NEW  DAUGHTER. 


CASELI A 

SIGNING  THE  CONTRACT  AND  WHAT  IT  COST 
THE  TRAGEDY  OF  WILD  RIVER  VALLEY. 
OUR  FRED. 

AN  OLD-FASHIONED  BOY. 
WANTED,  A  PEDIGREE. 

THE  THORN  IN  THE  NEST. 


ELSIE  AND  THE 
RAYMONDS 


BY 

MARTHA  FINLEY 


NEW  YORK 

DODD,  MEAD  AND  COMPANY 

PUBLISHERS 


COPYRIGHT,  1889, 
BY  DODD,  MEAD  &  COMPANY 

COPYRIGHT,  1917 
BY  CHARLES  B.  FINLEY 


P5 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMOND& 


CHAPTER  I. 

"  EXCUSE  me,  Miss,  but  do  you  know  of  any 
lady  who  wants  a  seamstress  ?  "  asked  a  timid, 
hesitating  voice. 

Lulu  Raymond  was  the  person  addressed. 
She  and  Max  had  just  alighted  from  the  Wood- 
burn  family  carriage — having  been  given  per 
mission  to  do  a  little  shopping  together — and 
she  had  paused  upon  the  pavement  for  a  moment 
to  look  after  it  as  it  rolled  away  down  the  street 
with  her  father,  who  had  some  business  matters 
to  attend  to  in  the  city  that  afternoon,  and  had 
appointed  a  time  and  place  for  picking  the  chil 
dren  up  again  to  carry  them  home. 

Tastefully,  attired,  rosy,  and  bright  with 
health  and  happiness,  Lulu's  appearance  was 
in  strange  contrast  to  that  of  the  shabbily 
dressed  girl,  with  pale,  pinched  features  that 
wore  an  expression  of  patient  suffering,  who 
stood  by  her  side. 

"  Were  you  speaking  to  me  ? "   Lulu  asked, 


4  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

turning  quickly  at  the  sound  of  the  voice,  and 
regarding  the  shrinking  figure  with  pitying 
eyes. 

"Yes,  Miss,  if  you'll  excuse  the  liberty.  I 
thought  you  looked  kind,  and  that  maybe  your 
mother  might  want  some  one  to  do  plain 
sewing." 

"I  hardly  think  she  does,  but  I'll  ask  her 
when  I  go  home,"  replied  Lulu.  "  Are  you  the 
person  who  wants  the  work  ?  " 

"  Yes,  Miss  ;  and  I'd  try  to  give  satisfaction. 
I've  been  brought  up  to  the  use  of  my  needle, 
and  the  sewing  machine  too.  And — and  " — in 
a  choking  voice — "  I  need  work  badly ;  mother's 
sick,  and  we've  only  what  I  can  earn  tc  depend 
on  for  food  and  clothes,  and  doctor,  and  medi 
cine,  and  to  pay  the  rent." 

"  Oh,  how  dreadful  1 "  cried  Lulu,  hastily 
taking  out  her  purse. 

"  You  are  very  kind,  Miss ;  but  I'm  not  ask 
ing  charity,"  the  girl  said,  shrinking  back,  blush 
ing  and  shamefaced. 

"  Of  course  not,  you  don't  look  like  a  beggar,'* 
returned  Lulu  with  warmth.  "  But  I'd  be  glad 
to  help  you  in  some  suitable  way.  Where  do 
you  live  ?  " 

At  this  instant  Max,  whose  attention  had  been 
drawn  for  a  moment  to  some  article  in  the  show- 
window  of  a  store  near  at  hand,  joined  his  sister, 
and  with  her  listened  to  the  girl's  reply. 


ELSIE  A1O)  THE  RAYMONDS  5 

"  Just  down  that  alley  yonder,  Number  five," 
she  said.  "  It's  but  a  poor  place  we  have ;  a 
little  bare  attic  room,  but — but  we  try  to  be 
content  with  it,  because  it's  the  best  we  can  do." 

"  What  is  it  she  wants  ?  "  Max  asked,  in  a  low 
aside  to  Lulu. 

"  Sewing.  I'm  going  to  ask  Mamma  Yi  and 
Grandma  Elsie  if  they  can  find  some  for  her. 
But  we'll  have  to  know  where  she  can  be  found. 
Shall  we  go  with  her  to  her  home  ?  " 

"  No  ;  papa  would  not  approve,  I  think.  But 
I'll  write  down  the  address,  and  I'm  sure  papa 
will  see  that  they're  relieved,  if  they  need  help." 

Turning  to  the  girl  again,  as  he  took  note 
book  and  pencil  from  his  pocket,  "  What  is  the 
name  of  the  alley  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  Rose,"  she  answered,  adding,  with  a  mel 
ancholy  smile,  "though  there's  nothing  rosy 
about  it  except  the  name  ;  it's  narrow  and  dirty, 
and  the  people  are  poor,  many  of  them  beggars, 
drunken,  and  quarrelsome." 

"How  dreadful  to  have  to  live  in  such  a 
place  ! "  exclaimed  Lulu,  looking  compassionate 
ly  at  the  speaker. 

"  Rose  Alley,"  murmured  Max,  jotting  it  down 
in  his  book,  "just  out  of  State  Street.  What 
number  ?  " 

"Number  five,  sir;  and  it's  between  Fourth 
and  Fifth." 

"  Oh,  yes;   I'll  put  that  down,  too,  and  I'm 


6  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

sure  the  place  can  be  found  without  any  diffi 
culty.  But  what  is  your  name  ?  We  will  need 
to  know  whom  to  inquire  for." 

"  Susan  Allen,  sir." 

The  girl  was  turning  away,  but  Lulu  stopped 
her. 

"  Wait  a  moment.  You  said  your  mother  was 
sick,  and  I'd  like  to  send  her  something  good  to 
eat.  I  dare  say  she  needs  delicacies  to  tempt 
her  appetite.  Come  with  me  to  that  fruit-stand 
on  the  corner,"  hurrying  toward  it  as  she  spoke, 
the  girl  following  at  a  respectful  distance. 

"  That  was  a  good  and  kind  thought,  Lu," 
Max  remarked,  stepping  close  to  his  sister's 
side  as  she  paused  before  the  fruit-stand,  eagerly 
scanning  its  tempting  display  of  fruits  and  con 
fections. 

"You  don't  doubt  papa's  approval  of  this  ?  " 
she  returned  interrogatively,  giving  him  an 
arch  look  and  smile. 

"No  ;  not  a  bit  of  it ;  he  always  likes  to  see 
us  generous  and  ready  to  relieve  distress.  I 
must  have  a  share  in  the  good  work." 

"Then  they'll  have  all  the  more,  for  I 
shan't  give  any  less  because  you're  going  to 
give,  too.  Oh,  what  delicious  looking  straw 
berries  !  " 

"And  every  bit  as  good  as  they  look,  Miss," 
said  the  keeper  of  the  stand. 

"What's  the  price?" 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS,  7 

"  Dollar  a  box,  Miss.  They  always  come 
high  the  first  o'  the  season,  you  know ;  they 
were  a  dollar-ten  only  yesterday." 

"  Do  you  think  your  sick  mother  would  en 
joy  them  ?  "  Lulu  asked,  turning  to  Susan,  who 
was  looking  aghast  at  the  price  named. 

"  Oh,  yes,  indeed,  Miss  ;  but — but  it's  too 
much  for  you  to  give  ;  we  have  hardly  so  much 
as  that  to  spend  on  a  week's  victuals." 

"  Then  I'm  sure  you  ought  to  have  a  few 
luxuries  for  once,"  said  Lulu.  "  I'll  take  a  box 
for  her,"  addressing  the  man,  and  taking  out 
her  purse  as  she  spoke. 

"A  dozen  of  those  oranges,  too,  a  pound  of 
your  nicest  crackers,  and  one  of  sugar  to  eat 
with  the  berries,"  said  Max,  producing  his  port- 
monnaie. 

Tley  saw  the  articles  put  up,  paid  for  them, 
put  them  into  Susan's  hands,  and  hurried  on 
their  way,  followed  by  her  grateful  looks. 

ID  trembling,  tearful  tones  she  had  tried  to 
thank  them,  but  they  would  not  stay  to  listen. 

"  Ho**"  glad  she  was,"  said  Lulu.  "  And  no 
wonde:  for  she  looks  half  starved.  And,  O 
Max,  just  think,  if  we  hadn't  a  father  to  take 
care  of  and  provide  for  us  we  might  be  as  poor 
and  distressed  as  she  is  ! " 

"  That's  so,"  returned  Max  ;  "  we've  hardly  a 
thing  worth  having  that  hasn't  come  to  us 
through  my  father." 


8  .ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  My  father,  sir,"  asserted  Lulu,  giving  him  a 
laughing  glance. 

"  Yes,  our  father ;  but  he  was  mine  be 
fore  he  was  yours,"  laughed  her  brother. 
"Well,  here  we  are  at  Blake's,  where  you 
have  an  errand ;  at  least,  so  you  said,  I 
think." 

They  passed  into  the  store,  finding  so  many 
customers  there  that  all  the  clerks  were  en- 
gaged ;  and  while  waiting  till  some  one  couIJl 
attend  to  their  wants,  they  amused  themselves 
in  scrutinizing  the  contents  of  shelves,  counters, 
and  show-cases.  Some  picture-frames,  brackets, 
and  other  articles  of  carved  wood  attracted 
their  attention. 

"  Some  of  those  are  quite  pretty,  Max,"  Lulu 
remarked  in  an  undertone  ;  "  but  I  think  you 
have  made  prettier  ones." 

"  So  have  you  ;  and  see,"  pointing  to  the 
prices  attached,  "  they  pay  quite  well  for  them. 
No,  I'm  not  so  sure  of  that,  but  they  ask  good 
prices  from  their  customers.  Perhaps  we  could 
make  a  tolerable  support  at  the  business,  if  we 
had  to  take  care  of  ourselves,"  he  added  in  a 
half -jesting  tone. 

"  Earn  enough  to  buy  bread  and  butter  may 
be,  but  not  half  the  good  things  papa  buys  for 
us,"  said  Lulu. 

"Is  no  one  waiting  upon  you?"  asked  the 
proprietor  of  the  store,  drawing  near. 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  9 

**No,  sir;  they  all  seem  to  be  busy,"  an 
swered  Lulu. 

"  Yes.  What  can  I  show  you  ?  Some  of  this 
carved  work  ?  We  have  sold  a  good  deal  of  it, 
and  I'm  sorry  to  say  that  the  young  lady  who 
supplied  it  has  decided  to  give  up  the  business — 
and  go  into  matrimony,"  he  added,  with  a 
laugh. 

A  thought  seemed  to  strike  Lulu,  and  she 
asked,  coloring  slightly  as  she  spoke,  "  Does  it 
pay  well  ?  " 

The  merchant  named  the  prices  he  had  given 
for  several  of  the  articles,  and  asked  in  his  turn 
if  she  knew  of  any  one  who  would  like  to  earn 
money  in  that  way. 

"  I — I'm  not  quite  sure,"  she  answered.  "  I 
know  a  boy,  and  a  girl  too,  who  are  fond  of 
doing  such  work,  and  I  think  can  do  a  little 
better  than  this,  but — " 

"You  doubt  if  they  would  care  to  make  a 
business  of  it,  eh  ?  "  he  said  inquiringly,  as  she 
paused,  leaving  her  sentence  unfinished. 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  I'm  not  sure  they  would  want  to, 
or  that  their  parents  would  be  willing  to  have 
them  do  so.  If  you  please,  I  should  like  to  look 
at  materials  for  fancy  work." 

"  Yes,  Miss.  This  way,  if  you  please.  We 
have  them  in  great  variety,  and  of  the  best 
quality." 

Captain  Raymond  expected  a  friend  on  an  in* 


10  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

coming  train,  and  had  directed  the  children  to 
be  at  the  depot  a  few  minutes  before  it  was  due. 
Punctuality  was  one  of  the  minor  virtues  he  in 
sisted  upon,  and  while  interested  in  their  shop 
ping,  they  were  not  forgetful  of  the  necessity 
for  keeping  their  appointment  with  him.  Their 
watches  were  consulted  frequently,  .and  ample 
time  allowed  for  their  walk  from  the  last  store 
visited  to  the  depot. 

"  We  are  here  first ;  our  carriage  isn't  in  sight 
yet,"  remarked  Lulu  with  satisfaction,  as  they 
reached  the  outer  door  of  the  building. 

"Yes,"  said  Max,  "but  papa  will  be  along 
presently,  for  it  wants  but  ten  minutes  of  the 
time  when  the  train  is  due." 

"And  he's  never  a  minute  late,"  added 
Lulu. 

Max  led  the  way  to  the  ladies'  room,  seated 
his  sister  comfortably  in  an  arm-chair,  and  asked 
if  there  was  anything  he  could  get,  or  do  for 
her  ;  treating  her  with  as  much  gallantry  as  if 
she  had  been  the  sister  of  somebody  else. 

"  Thank  you,  Maxie,  I'm  really  comfortable, 
and  in  want  of  nothing,"  she  replied.  "  I'll  be 
glad  if  that  gentleman  doesn't  come,"  she  went 
on,  "  for  it's  so  much  nicer  to  have  papa  all  to 
ourselves  driving  home." 

"  Yes  ;  and  afterward  too.  But  we  mustn't 
be  selfish,  and  perhaps  he  would  be  disappointed 
if  his  friend  shouldn't  come." 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.  11 

"  Oh,  I  hadn't  thought  of  that !  And  if  papa 
would  rather  have  him  come,  I  hope  he  will." 

"  Of  course  you  do.  Ah,  here  comes  papa 
now,"  as  a  tall,  remarkably  fine-looking  man,  of 
decidedly  military  bearing,  entered  the  room  and 
came  smilingly  toward  them. 

"  Good,  punctual  children,"  he  said.  "  I  hope 
you  have  been  enjoying  yourselves  since  we 
parted  ?  " 

"  Ob,  yes,  papa,"  they  answered,  speaking  both 
at  once;  "  we  did  all  our  errands,  and  are  ready 
to  go  home." 

"  The  train  is  just  due,"  he  said,  consulting 
his  watch.  "Ah,  here  it  comes,"  as  its  rush  and 
roar  smote  upon  their  ears. 

Lulu  sprang  up  hastily. 

"  Wait  a  little,  daughter,"  the  captain  said,  lay 
ing  a  gently  detaining  hand  on  her  shoulder  ; 
"  we  need  not  be  in  haste,  as  we  are  not  going 
on  the  train." 

"  Everybody  else  seems  to  be  hurrying  out, 
papa,"  she  said. 

"  Yes ;  they  are  probably  passengers.  Ah, 
the  train  has  arrived  and  come  to  a  standstill,  so 
we  will  go  now.  Max,  you  may  help  your  sister 
into  the  carriage,  while  I  look  about  for  our  ex 
pected  guest." 

The  captain  scanned  narrowly  the  living  stream 
pouring  from  the  cars,  but  without  finding  him 
of  whom  he  was  in  quest.  He  turned  away  in 


It  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

jome  disappointment,  and  was  about  to  step  into 
Ms  carriage,  when  a  not  unfamiliar  voice  hailed 
Mm. 

"Good-evening,  Captain  Raymond.  Will 
you  aid  a  fellow-creature  in  distress  ?  It  seems 
that  by  some  mistake  my  carriage  has  failed  to 
meet  me,  though  I  thought  they  understood 
tihat  I  would  return  home  by  this  train.  If  you 
Trill  give  me  a  lift  as  far  as  your  own  gate  I  can 
«asily  walk  the  rest  of  the  way  to  Briarwood." 

"  It  will  afford  me  pleasure  to  do  so,  Mr. 
Clark,  or  to  take  you  quite  to  Briarwood,"  re 
sponded  the  captain  heartily.  "  We  have  abun- 
Aance  of  room.  Step  in,  and  I  will  follow." 

This  unexpected  addition  to  their  party  gave 
Lulu  some  slight  feeling  of  vexation  and  disap 
pointment,  but  her  father's  proud  look  and 
smile,  as  he  said,  "  My  son  Max  and  daughter 
.Lulu,  Mr.  Clark,"  and  the  affectionate  manner 
in  which,  on  taking  his  seat  at  her  side,  he  put 
Ms  arm  about  her  waist  and  drew  her  close  to 
him,  went  far  to  restore  her  to  her  wonted  good- 
iumor. 

Mr.  Clark  said,  " How  do  you  do,  my  dears?" 
then  engaged  the  captain  in  conversation,  taking 
no  further  notice  of  the  children. 

But  they  were  intelligent,  well-instructed  chil 
dren,  and  when  the  talk  present!}'  turned  upon 
one  of  the  political  questions  of  the  day  they 
Trere  interested;  for  their  father  had  taken 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.  13 

pains  to  give  them  no  little  information  on  that 
and  kindred  topics.  He  did  not  encourage  their 
reading  of  the  daily  secular  papers — indeed  for 
bade  it,  because  he  would  not  have  their  pur* 
minds  sullied  by  the  sickening  details  of  crime, 
or  love  of  the  horrible  cultivated  by  minute  de 
scriptions  of  its  punishment  in  the  execution  of 
murderers  ;  but  he  examined  the  papers  himself, 
and  culled  from  them  such  articles,  to  be  read 
aloud  in  the  family,  as  he  deemed  suitable  and 
instructive  or  entertaining  ;  or  he  would  relate 
incidents  and  give  instruction  and  explanations 
in  his  own  words,  which  the  children  generally- 
preferred  to  the  reading. 

The  gentlemen  were  in  the  midst  of  their  con 
versation,  and  the  great  gates  leading  into  the 
avenue  at  Woodburn  almost  reached,  when  Mr. 
Clark  caught  sight  of  his  own  carriage  approach 
ing  from  the  opposite  direction. 

He  called  and  beckoned  to  his  coachman,  and 
with  a  hasty  good-by  and  hearty  thanks  to 
Captain  Raymond,  transferred  himself  to  his 
own  conveyance,  which  at  once  faced  about  and 
whirled  away  toward  Briarwood,  while  the 
Woodburn  family  carriage  turned  into  the*  ave 
nue  and  drove  up  to  the  house. 

Violet  and  the  three  younger  children  were 
on  the  veranda,  waiting  for  its  coming,  and 
ready  with  a  joyful  welcome  to  its  occupants. 

"  Papa,  papa  !  "  shouted  little  Elsie,  as  they 


14  ELSIE  AND   TEE  RAYMONDS 

alighted,  "  Max  and  Lu,  too  !  Oh,  I'se  so  glad 
you  all  turn  back  adain  !  " 

"  Are  you,  papa's  sweet  pet  ?  "  returned  the 
captain,  bending  down  to  take  her  in  his  arms 
with  a  tender  caress. 

Then  he  kissed  his  wife  and  the  lovely  babe 
crowing  in  her  arms  and  reaching  out  his  chubby 
ones  to  be  taken  by  his  father,  evidently  as 
much  rejoiced  as  Elsie  at  his  return. 

"  In  a  moment,  Ned,"  laughed  the  captain, 
stooping  to  give  a  hug  and  kiss  to  Gracie  wait 
ing  at  his  side  ;  then  taking  possession  of  an 
easy-chair,  with  a  pleasant  "Thank  you,  my 
dears,"  to  Max  and  Lulu,  who  had  hastened  to 
draw  it  forward  for  him,  he  took  a  baby  on  each 
knee,  while  the  three  older  children  clustered 
about  him,  and  Violet,  sitting  near,  watched  with 
laughing  eyes  the  merry  scene  that  followed. 

"  Gracie  and  Elsie  may  search  papa's  pockets 
now  and  see  what  they  can  find,"  said  the  cap 
tain. 

Promptly  and  with  eager  delight  they  availed 
themselves  of  the  permission. 

Grace  drew  forth  a  small,  gilt-edged,  hand 
somely  bound  volume. 

"  That  is  for  your  mamma,"  her  father  said  ; 
"  you  may  hand  it  to  her  ;  and  perhaps,  if  you 
look  farther,  you  may  find  something  for  your- 

lf." 

Violet  received  the  gift  with  a  pleased  smile 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  15 

and  a  hearty  "  Thank  you,  Gracie.  Thank  you, 
my  dear.  I  shall  be  sure  to  prize  it  for  the 
sake  of  the  giver,  whatever  the  contents 
may  be." 

But  the  words  were  half  drowned  in  Elsie's 
shouts  of  delight  over  a  pretty  toy  and  a  box  of 
bon-bons. 

"  Hand  the  candy  round,  pet ;  to  mamma  first," 
her  father  said. 

"  May  Elsie  eat  some  too,  papa  ?  "  she  asked 
coaxingly,  as  she  got  down  from  his  knee  to 
obey  his  order. 

"  Yes  ;  a  little  to-night,  and  some  more  to 
morrow." 

Grace  had  dived  into  another  pocket.  "  Oh  ! 
is  this  for  me,  papa  ?  "  she  asked,  drawing  out 
a  small  paper  parcel. 

"  Open  it  and  see,"  was  his  smiling  rejoinder. 

With  eager  fingers  she  untied  the  string  and 
opened  the  paper. 

"  Three  lovely  silver  fruit-knives  ! "  she  ex 
claimed.  "  Names  on  'em,  too.  Lu,  this  is 
yours,  for  it  has  your  name  on  it  ;  and  this  is 
mine,  and  the  other  Maxie's,"  handing  them  to 
the  owners  as  she  spoke.  "  Thank  you,  papa,  oh, 
thank  you  very  much,  for  mine  !  "  holding  up 
her  face  for  a  kiss. 

Bestowing  it  very  heartily,  "You  are  all  very 
welcome,  my  darlings,"  he  said,  for  Max  and 
Lulu  were  saying  thank  you  too. 


H    .       ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

And  now  they  hastened  to  display  their  pur- 
*hases  of  the  afternoon  and  present  some  little 
gifts  to  Grace  and  Elsie. 

These  were  received  with  thanks  and  many 
expressions  of  pleasure,  and  Lulu  was  in  the 
midst  of  an  animated  account  of  her  shopping 
experiences  when  her  father,  glancing  at  his 
watch,  reminded  her  that  she  would  have  barely 
time  to  make  herself  neat  for  the  tea-table  if  she 
repaired  to  her  room  at  once. 

"Max  and  I,  too,  must  pay  some  attention 
to  our  toilets,"  he  added,  giving  the  babe  to 
its  nurse,  who  had  just  appeared  upon  the 
•cene. 

"  Now,  papa,  let's  run  a  race,  and  see  who'll 
be  down  first," — proposed  Lulu  laughingly,  as 
ihe  went  skipping  and  dancing  along  the  hall 
just  ahead  of  him. 

"  Very  well,  and  I'll  give  you  a  dollar  if  you 
are  first, — and  there  are  no  signs  of  haste  or 
negligence  in  your  appearance." 

"And  is  the  offer  open  to  me  too,  papa?" 
Asked  Max,  coming  up  behind. 

"  Yes ;  I  shall  not  be  partial,"  answered  the 
captain,  suddenly  lifting  Lulu  off  her  feet  and 
starting  up  the  stairs  with  her  in  his  arms. 

"  O  papa,  you'll  tire  yourself  all  out ! "  she 
exclaimed  with  a  merry  laugh  ;  "I'm  so  big  and 
ieavy." 

*'  Not  a  bit,"  he  said.     "  I'm  so  big  and  strong. 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  19 

There,  now  for  our  race,"  as  he  set  her  down  im 
the  upper  hall. 

"  It's  nice,  nice,  to  have  such  a  big,  strong 
papa !  "  she  said,  lifting  a  flushed,  happy  face 
to  his  and  reaching  up  to  give  him  a  hug  and 
kiss. 

"  I'm  glad  my  little  daughter  thinks  so,"  he 
returned,  smiling  down  on  her  and  laying  his 
hand  tenderly  on  her  head  for  an  instant. 

The  captain  and  Lulu  met  in  the  upper  hall 
just  as  the  tea-bell  rang,  and  at  the  same  instant 
Max  came  down  the  stairs  from  the  third  story 
almost  at  a  bound. 

A  merry  peal  of  laughter  from  all  three,  and 
the  captain  said,  "  So  nobody  is  first ;  we  shall 
all  reach  the  tea-room  together." 

"  And  you  wont  have  any  dollar  to  pay,  papa," 
said  Lulu,  her  face  very  bright  and  no  disap 
pointment  in  her  tone.  She  was  clinging  to  her 
father's  hand  as  they  went  down  the  stairs,  Max 
close  behind  them. 

"  But  I  don't  care  to  save  it,"  was  the  reply, 
"  so  what  shall  be  done  with  it  ?  Suppose  I 
divide  it  between  you  and  Max." 

"  And  yourself,  papa,"  added  Max  laugh 
ingly. 

"  His  father  smiled.  "  Perhaps  a  better  plan 
would  be  to  put  it  into  our  missionary  box,"  he 
said. 

"  Oh,  yes,  sir  !  "  exclaimed  both  the  children, 


18  EL8IE_^AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

*"\ 

"  that  would  be  tne  best  thing  that  could  be  done 
with  it." 

They  had  taken  their  seats  at  the  table,  and 
all  were  quiet  while  the  captain  asked  a  blessing 
on  their  food. 


CHAPTER  H. 

"  I  HAVE  something  to  tell  you,  my  dear," 
Violet  began,  giving  her  husband  a  bright  smile 
from  behind  the  coffee  urn  as  she  filled  his  cup. 

"  Ah  ?  "  he  said,"  returning  the  smile.  "  I  am 
all  attention.  I  have  no  doubt  it  is  something 
worth  hearing." 

"Perhaps  you remember.that  mamma's  fiftieth 
birthday  will  come  early  next  month,"  Violet 
resumed. 

"  No,  not  the  fiftieth  surely  !  "  exclaimed  the 
captain.  "  Really  I  think  that,  judging  from 
her  looks  alone,  no  .one  would  take  her  to  be 
over  forty." 

"  So  we  all  think,  and  everybody  says  she 
has  a  remarkably  young  face.  But  it  will  be 
her  fiftieth  birthday,  and  we,  her  children,  want 
to  do  her  unusual  honor.  Of  course,  as  you 
know,  my  dear,  we  always  remember  the  day, 
and  each  of  us  feas  some  little  gift  for  her, 
but  this,  being  her  semi-centennial,  we  think 
should  be  observed  in  some  special  manner." 

"  I  agree  with  you,  and  what  do  you  propose 
doing  in  order  to  celebrate  it  appropriately  ?  n 
19 


20  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  We  have  not  fully  decided  that  question,  and 
would  be  glad  of  suggestions  and  advice  from 
you,  if  you  will  kindly  give  them." 

"  I  am  sensible  of  the  honor  you  do  me,  but 
must  take  a  little  time  to  reflect,"  was  hi* 
pleasant  rejoinder. 

"  Papa,  how  old  are  you  ?  "  asked  Grace  with 
sudden  animation,  as  if  the  question  had  just 
occurred  to  her. 

"  About  twenty-four  years  older  than  Max," 
replied  the  captain,  turning  upon  his  first-born 
a  look  of  fatherly  pride  and  affection. 

"  And  I'm  almost  fifteen,"  added  Max. 

"That  makes  papa  thirty-nine,"  remarked 
Lulu.  "You'll  be  forty  next  birthday,  wont 
you,  papa  ?  " 

"  Yes,  daughter." 

"  Then  Grandma  Elsie  is  only  about  ten  years 
older  than  you,  not  nearly  enough  older  to  be 
your  real  mother." 

"  Quite  true,"  he  said,  with  a  humorous  look, 
"  but  I  find  it  not  at  all  unpleasant  to  have  so 
young  and  beautiful  a  mother  ;  a  lady  so  lovely 
in  character,  as  well  as  in  form  and  feature, 
that  I  should  greatly  rejoice  to  know  that  my 
daughters  would  grow  up  to  resemble  her  in  all 
respects. 

"I'd  like  to  be  exactly  like  her,  except — " 
But  there  Grace  paused,  leaving  her  sentence 
unfinished. 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  21 

"  Except  in  being  fifty  years  old  ?  "  her  father 
asked,  regarding  her  with  laughing  eyes. 

"  Yes,  sir;  I'd  rather  be  a  little  girl  for  a 
good  while  yet ;  your  little  girl,  papa,  who  can 
sit  on  your  knee  whenever  she  wants  to." 

"  That's  right,"  he  said  heartily.  "  I  am  by 
no  means  ready  to  part  with  my  little  Gracie 
yet." 

"  I  feel  just  as  Gracie  does  about  it,"  said 
Lulu.  "  I  want  to  be  a  little  girl  for  a  while 
longer,  then  a  young  lady;  but  when  I  get  to 
be  fifty  years  old  I'd  like  to  be  as  nearly  like 
Grandma  Elsie  as  possible." 

"  I  hope  not  to  be,"  remarked  Max  face 
tiously  ;  "but  I  know  a  gentleman  I  would  like 
to  resemble  so  much  when  I'm  forty,  that  people 
would  say  of  me,  '  He's  just  a  chip  of  the  old 
block,'  "  and  with  the  last  words  the  lad  turned 
a  proud,  admiring,  affectionate  look  upon  his 
father. 

The  captain's  countenance  expressed  pleasure* 
and  Violet,  looking  pleased  also,  said,  "  I  hope 
you  will  have  your  wish,  Max,  and  I  think  there 
is  every  prospect  of  it." 

"  What  plans  are  thought  of  for  the  coming 
celebration,  my  dear  ?  "  asked  the  captain. 

"  We  talk  of  a  garden  or  lawn  party,  if  the 
weather  is  fine  ;  all  the  relatives  to  be  invited, 
and  perhaps  a  few  intimate  friends  beside.  Cer 
tainly  our  minister  and  his  wife." 


22  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  I  don't  think  I  could  suggest  anything  bet 
ter,"  the  captain  said. 

"  But  you  may  be  able  to  give  some  usef ul 
hints  in  regard  to  plans  for  {he  entertainment 
of  the  guests,  and  suitable  gifts  for  mamma." 

"  Possibly ;  and  you  must  help  me  to  decide 
upon  mine." 

"  I  shall  be  only  too  glad,"  she  answered  with 
a  bright,  pleased  look. 

"  And  we  children  may  give  something  nictj 
to  Grandma  Elsie  too,  mayn't  we,  papa  ?  "  they 
asked,  all  three  speaking  at  once. 

"  Most  assuredly,"  he  replied,  "  the  very- 
nicest  thing,  or  things,  you  can  think  of  that 
will  come  within  the  limits  of  your  financial 
ability." 

"  Papa,"  remarked  Grace  doubtfully,  "  I 
don't  believe  I  know  exactly  what  that 
means." 

"You  understand  the  meaning  of  ability, 
surely  ?  "  returned  her  father. 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  but  that  other  wtfrd — fi — " 

"  Financial  ?  as  I  used  it  then,  it  means  the 
amount  of  money  you  children  may  have  at  your 
disposal  at  the  time  of  making  your  purchases." 

"Oh,  I'm  glad  I  have  some  money  saved 
up  !  "  she  remarked  with  satisfaction. 

"  How  much  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  A  good  deal,  papa  ;  about  five  dollars,  I 
think." 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.  23 

"  Ah,  so  much  as  that  ?  quite  a  fortune,"  he 
said,  with  a  look  of  amusement. 

"  I  suppose,  wife,  your  mother  is  to  be  con 
sulted  in  regard  to  the  manner  of  the  proposed 
celebration  ?  about  the  party,  the  guests  to  b» 
invited,  and  so  forth  ?  " 

"  Oh,  yes,  sir  ;  about  everything  but  the  gifts 
she  is  to  receive." 

The  babies  had  had  their  evening  romp  with 
papa  and  been  carried  off  to  the  nursery,  Gracie 
going  along  at  Elsie's  urgent  request,  and  all 
the  more  willingly  because  she  had  heard  her 
father  say  he  must  write  a  letter  immediately, 
that  it  might  be  in  time  to  go  by  the  next  mail, 
so  she  knew  that  for  the  present  she  and  Max 
and  Lulu  must  do  without  their  usual  bit  of  chat 
with  him. 

Lulu  was  particularly  desirous  for  an  oppor 
tunity  for  a  talk  with  him,  for  she  had  a  scheme 
in  her  head  about  which  she  wished  to  ask  his 
advice  and  permission.  She  would  not  have 
minded  broaching  the  subject  before  Max  and 
Gracie,  but  thought  it  would  be  still  more  en 
joyable  to  talk  it  over  with  papa  alone. 

"  I'll  not  go  far  away,"  she  said  to  herself, 
"  and  when  papa  has  finished  his  writing  maybe 
I'll  get  a  chance  to  talk  a  little  wTith  him  before 
anybody  else  comes." 

She  took  a  book  and  seated  herself  in  the 
veranda  ;  but  she  did  not  read.  The  captain, 


24  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

stepping  to  the  door  presently,  saw  her  sitting 
with  the  book  lying  unopened  in  her  lap,  her 
attitude  and  expression  denoting  profound 
thought.  She  did  not  seem  aware  even  of  hia 
approach  as  he  drew  near  her  side,  but  started 
and  looked  up  in  surprise  as  he  laid  his  hand 
gently  on  her  head,  saying,  "  A  penny  for  my 
little  girl's  thoughts  !  She  looks  as  if  she  had  the 
affairs  of  the  nation  on  her  shoulders." 

"  I'm  sure  they're  not  worth  a  penny,  papa, 
but  you  are  welcome  to  them  for  nothing,"  she 
returned  laughingly,  "  if  you  have  time  to  let 
me  talk  to  you." 

She  rose  as  she  spoke,  and  taking  the  chair, 
he  drew  her  to  his  knee. 

"  Plenty  of  time,  now  that  that  letter  has  been 
dispatched,"  he  said.  "  But  are  you  to  do  all 
the  talking  ?  " 

"  Oh  no,  indeed,  papa  ;  I  hope  you'll  do  the 
most  of  it,  but  I  suppose  I  must  begin  by  tell 
ing  you  my  thoughts." 

"Yes." 

"I  was  thinking  about  a  poor  girl  that  spoke 
to  me  in  the  street  to-day  and  asked  for  sewing 
to  do  to  earn  money  to  support  herself  and  her 
sick  mother. 

"  I  told  her  I  would  try  to  get  some  work  for 
her.  Afterward  Max  and  I  went  into  a  store 
where  we  saw  brackets  and  picture  frames,  and 
other  things,  carved  out  of  wood  as  we  do  it, 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  25 

only  they  were  not  so  pretty  as  some  we  have 
made  ;  at  least  we  both  thought  so,  and  we 
wondered  how  much  was  paid  for  such  work. 
The  price  they  were  asking  for  them  was  on 
them,  and  Max  thought  it  a  good  one.  We 
were  talking  together  about  it  when  the  mer 
chant  came  up  and  asked  if  we  wanted  to  buy 
any  of  those  things. 

"  He  said  he  had  sold  a  good  many,  and  was 
sorry  the  lady  who  had  carved  them  for  him 
was  going  to  give  up  doing  it.  I  asked  if  it 
paid  well,  and  he  told  me  how  much  he  gave, 
and  asked  if  I  knew  anybody  who  would  like  to 
earn  money  in  that  way." 

"  And  what  answer  did  you  make  to  that  ?  n 

"  I  said  I  wasn't  sure  ;  I  knew  a  boy  and  girl 
who  were  fond  of  that  kind  of  work,  and  I 
thought  could  do  it  a  little  better  than  those 
were  done,  but  I  didn't  know  whether  they 
would  want  to  do  it  for  pay,  or  whether  their 
parents  would  be  willing  to  let  them." 

"  And  the  boy  and  girl  you  referred  to  were 
Max  and  yourself  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  would  you  let  us  do  it  if  we  wanted 
to?" 

"  That  would  depend  upon  circumstances  ;  it 
is  a  question  to  be  considered." 

"  Well,  papa,  this  is  what  I  was  thinking  of 
when  you  spoke  to  me.  You  know  I  spend 
some  of  my  spare  time  sewing  for  the  poor,  and 


26  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

you  know  I  don't  like  to  sew — I  mean  I  don't 
enjoy  doing  it — and  I  do  enjoy  carving ;  and 
that  poor  girl  wants  sewing  to  do,  because  she 
needs  to  earn  her  living,  and  that's  her  way  of 
doing  it ;  and  I  was  trying  to  decide  whether 
or  not  it  would  be  right  for  me  to  give  her  the 
sewing  to  do  and  pay  her  for  doing  it  with 
money  I  could  earn  by  carving.  Would  it  be 
right,  papa  ?  and  will  you  let  me  do  it  ?  " 

"  I  say  yes  to  both  questions  ;  I  think  it  a 
good  idea  ;  for  you  will  be  doing  good  in  two 
ways — helping  the  poor  to  whom  the  garments 
go,  and  the  poor  girl  who  wants  employment  ; 
and  that  without  indulging  yourself  in  laziness." 

"  Oh,  I  am  so  glad  you  approve,  papa  !  " 
Lulu  exclaimed  in  delight.  "  I  was  afraid  you 
would  not  ;  I  was  afraid  that  perhaps  I  ought 
to  do  the  sewing  myself  if  only  because  I  dis 
like  it  so." 

"  No,  my  child,  there  is  nothing  praise 
worthy  in  doing  a  thing  merely  because  it  is 
unpleasant  to  us.  If  another  is  needing  help 
which  we  can  give  in  that  way  and  no  other, 
duty  bids  us  to  perform  the  unpleasant  task  ; 
but  in  this  case  it  seems  you  can  do  more  good 
by  allowing  the  young  sewing-girl  to  act  as 
your  substitute,  helping  her  at  the  same  time 
that  you  help  those  to  whom  the  garments 
will  go. 

"  But  the   sewing  j^m   can  give  will  not  be 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  27 

really  enough  to  keep  even  one  seamstress 
busy." 

"Oh,  no,  sir  ;  but  I  am  going  to  tell  Mamma 
Vi  and  Grandma  Elsie  about  her,  and  I  think 
they  will  find  her  work  and  recommend  her  to 
other  ladies  who  want  sewing  done,  if  they  find 
that  she  does  it  well." 

"Did  you  learn  her  name  and  where  she 
lives  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  and  I  wanted  to  go  and  see  the 
place,  but  Max  said  you  would  not  approve  ; 
so  I  didn't  go." 

"  Max  was  quite  right.  You  must  never  ven 
ture  into  strange  places  about  the  city  without 
my  knowledge  and  consent,  unless  with  Grand 
ma  Elsie  or  some  other  equally  wise  and  trust 
worthy  person." 

"I  will  not,  papa,"  she  answered,  smiling 
lovingly  into  his  eyes.  "I  do  hope  I  shall 
never  again  disobey  you  in  anything." 

"  I  hope  not,  indeed,"  he  said,  smoothing  her 
hair  caressingly.  "  So  far  as  I  know,  you  have 
been  very  good  and  obedient  for  the  last  six 
months  or  more." 

Just  then  Violet  and  Grace  joined  them, 
followed  almost  immediately  by  Max,  and  as 
he  stepped  from  the  doorway  the  Ion  family 
carriage  was  seen  coming  up  the  drive. 

It  brought  Violet's  grandparents,  mother,  and 
young  brother  and  sister — Kosie  and  Walter, 


28          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

They  spent  the  evening.  The  proposed  birthday 
celebration  was  under  discussion  for  some  time, 
several  questions  in  regard  to  it  were  settled, 
then  Lulu  found  an  opportunity  to  tell  of  Susan 
Allen  and  her  needs. 

Grandma  Elsie — always  ready  for  every  good 
work — said  :  "  If  you  will  accompany  me, 
Captain,  I  will  hunt  them  up  to-morrow  and 
inquire  into  their  needs,  should  nothing  unfore 
seen  happen  to  prevent." 

"  I  shall  be  at  your  service,  mother,  then,  or 
at  any  other  time,"  returned  the  captain  gallant 
ly.  "  And  we  will  take  Lulu  with  us,  if  you 
have  no  objection,"  he  added,  as  he  caught  an 
entreating  look  from  her. 

"Not  the  slightest,"  replied  Mrs.  Travilkj 
smiling  kindly  upon  the  little  girl. 

"  Oh,  thank  you,  Grandma  Elsie  !  Thank 
you,  papa  ;  I  should  like  to  go  very  much  in 
deed  "  ;  exclaimed  Lulu  joyously. 

While  Lulu  talked  with  Susan  Allen  in  the 
city  street  that  afternoon,  the  girl's  mother  lay 
on  a  bed  of  straw  in  the  small  attic  room  they 
called  home  ;  a  very  forlorn  specimen  of  a  home 
it  was,  though  everything  in  and  about  it  was 
scrupulously  neat  and  clean  ;  the  floor  was  bare, 
save  a  strip  of  carpet  beside  the  bed ;  there 
were  three  unpainted  wooden  chairs,  a  little 
table  to  match,  and  a  tiny  stove  ;  their  few 
changes  of  raiment  hung  on  hooks  along  the 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  29 

wall  back  of  the  bed,  and  a  few  cheap  dishes 
and  cooking  utensils  were  ranged  in  an  orderly 
manner  on  some  shelves  in  one  corner. 

The  one  window  was  shaded  by  a  paper  blind 
and  short  white  curtain,  both  bearing  evidence 
of  careful  mending,  as  did  the  night-dress 
worn  by  the  invalid,  the  sheets  and  pillow 
cases  of  her  bed. 

She  was  not  an  old  woman  ;  Susan  was  but 
sixteen,  and  her  mother,  who  had  married  very 
young,  little  more  than  twice  that  age.  But 
toil  and  privation  had  broken  down  her  health, 
and  aged  her  before  her  time,  so  that  she  looked 
full  forty  ;  there  were  very  perceptible  lines  in 
her  forehead,  and  the  dark  hair  was  streaked 
with  gray ;  yet  it  was  a  pleasant  face  to  look 
upon — so  full  of  sweet  patience  and  resig 
nation. 

A  well-worn  Bible  lay  beside  her,  and  one 
hand  rested  upon  the  open  page  ;  but  her  eyes 
were  closed  and  tears  trickled  down  her  wasted 
cheek,  while  her  lips  moved  as  if  in  prayer. 

One  standing  very  near  might  have  heard 
the  low,  murmured  words,  but  they  reached 
only  the  ear  of  Him  who  has  said  :  "  Call  upon 
me  in  the  day  of  trouble  ;  I  will  deliver  thee 
and  thou  shalt  glorify  me." 

It  was  that  promise  she  was  pleading. 

"  Lord,"  her  pale  lips  whispered,  "  I  believe 
thy  word  and  obey  thy  kind  command  :  it  is 


30 

the  day  of  trouble  with  me  and  my  beloved 
child.  We  are  in  sore  straits  ;  the  last  cent  is 
gone,  the  last  crust  eaten  ;  we  have  neither  barn 
nor  storehouse,  yet  I  know  thou  wilt  feed  us  as 
thou  dost  the  sparrows;  for  thou  hast  said, 
'Are  not  ye  much  better  than  they  ? '  and,  '  Your 
heavenly  Father  knoweth  that  ye  have  need  of 
all  these  things.'  Lord,  increase  my  faith  and 
let  me  never  for  one  moment  doubt  thy  word — 
thy  promise  to  deliver  those  who  call  upon  thee 
in  the  day  of  trouble,  and  never  to  leave  or 
forsake  any  who  put  their  trust  in  thee.  Oh, 
blessed  be  thy  holy  name,  for  all  the  great  and 
precious  promises  thou  hast  given  thy  people, 
and  upon  which  thou  hast  taught  me  to  lean 
in  every  time  of  trouble  ! " 

She  was  still  pouring  out  her  soul  in  prayer 
and  praise  when  Susan's  light  step  came  up  the 
stairs,  the  door  was  hastily  thrown  open,  and 
she  entered  with  flushed,  beaming  face,  and 
arms  full  of  bundles,  half  breathless  with  excite* 
ment  and  exertion. 

"  Mother,  dear  mother ! "  she  cried,  as  she 
hastened  to  deposit  her  burdens  on  the  table,  "  I 
know  you  have  been  praying  for  help,  and  God 
has  sent  it.  See  here  !  the  very  luxury  I  have 
been  longing  to  get  you,  but  without  the  least 
hope  of  being  able  to  do  so;  great,  lovely,  luscious 
strawberries  ! "  gently  pouring  them  from  the 
paper  bag  in  which  she  had  carried  them,  on  to 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  31 

a  plate.  "  I'll  put  some  of  the  finest  on  a  saucer 
for  you.  Here  is  sugar  for  them,  too,  and  deli 
cate  crackers  to  eat  with  them.  And  here  are 
oranges  ;  the  finest  in  the  market !  0  mother, 
eat  and  grow  strong  ! "  she  added,  tears  spring 
ing  to  her  eyes,  as  she  put  a  saucer  of  berries 
into  her  mother's  hand  and  laid  a  fine  orange  by 
her  side.  "  I  wont  keep  you  waiting  till  I  cau 
stem  the  berries,  but  just  give  you  some  sugar 
on  another  saucer  to  dip  them  into.  Oh,  if  I 
only  had  some  of  the  rich  cream  for  you  that  we 
used  to  have  before  we  left  the  farm  !  " 

"  Oh,  child,  our  Father  has  sent  us  so  much> 
so  much,  don't  let  us  fret  after  anything  more  !  " 
cried  the  mother  at  length,  recovering  the  power 
of  speech,  of  which  surprise  and  joy  had  robbed 
her  ever  since  her  daughter's  entrance  so  richly 
laden. 

"  No,  mother,  no  indeed  !  only  I  should  so 
love  to  give  you  every  comfort  and  luxury  to 
make  you  well.  You  are  so  thin  and  weak ! 
There,  do  lie  back  on  your  pillows  and  let  me 
feed  you.  Isn't  that  delicious  ?  "  putting  a  berry 
into  her  mouth. 

"  Oh,  very,  very  !  But  let  me  thank  God, 
and  then  do  you  eat  with  me." 

They  were  veiy  hungry,  having  scarcely 
tasted  food  that  day,  but  when  the  edge  of  their 
appetites  had  been  taken  off,  Mrs.  Allen  re« 
marked,  with  an  inquiring  look  at  her  daughter, 


32  ELSIE  AND  TEE  RAYMONDS. 

"  But  you  haven't  told  me  yet  where  you  got  all 
these  good  things  ?  " 

"  No,  mother,  but  I'll  do  it  now.  You  know 
I  went  out  in  search  of  work.  I  can't  beg,  but  I 
am  willing  to  ask  for  employment.  I  asked 
at  some  private  houses,  and  two  or  three 
stores,  but  no  one  seemed  to  care  to  risk  try 
ing  me. 

"  Then  I  saw  a  carriage  (a  very  handsome  one 
it  was,  with  match  horses)  stop  at  a  street  cross 
ing,  and  a  boy  and  girl  step  out  on  the  pave 
ment.  A  tall,  fine-looking  gentleman  handed 
the  little  girl  out,  then  stepped  back  into  the 
carriage,  and  it  drove  off. 

"  You  can't  think  how  pretty  and  beautifully 
dressed  the  little  girl  was  ;  she  had  bright  dark 
eyes,  rosy  cheeks,  and  a  smiling  mouth,  and  as 
the  gentleman  set  her  down  they  gave  each 
other  such  a  loving  look  !  I  felt  sure  she  had  a 
kind  heart,  so  I  stepped  up  to  her,  as  she  stood 
looking  after  the  carriage  as  it  drove  away 
down  the  street,  and  asked  her  if  she  knew  of 
anybody  wanting  a  seamstress. 

"  She  turned  round  quickly  and  answered  in 
a  very  pleasant  tone.  She  promised  to  tell  her 
mother  about  me  when  she  went  home,  and  see 
if  she  could  get  me  work  to  do.  She  opened 
her  purse — such  a  lovely  one  with  gold  clasps — 
as  if  she  meant  to  give  me  money,  and  I  felt 
my  face  grow  hot  at  being  taken  for  a  beggar. 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  33 

I  said  it  wasn't  charity  I  was  asking  for,  but 
work. 

"Then  she  said,  in  the  kindest  tone,  'Of 
course  not,  you  don't  look  like  a  beggar.  But 
I'd  be  glad  to  help  you  in  some  suitable  way '; 
and  asked  where  I  lived. 

"  While  I  was  telling  her  a  boy  came  up  and 
stood  beside  her  listening.  He  asked  me  ques 
tions,  too,  and  took  out  a  note-book  and  wrote 
down  my  name  and  address.  He  was  as  nice 
and  kind-looking  as  his  sister — as  I  suppose  she. 
is,  for  they  resemble  each  other  strongly  ;  the- 
gentleman,  too,  that  helped  her  out  of  the  car 
riage  ;  I  think  he  must  be  their  father. 

"They  called  each  other  Max  and  Lu,  and 
talked  between  themselves  about  what  would 
please  or  displease  papa. 

"I  had  told  her  that  you  were  sick,  and  we'd 
nothing  to  depend  on  but  what  I  could  earn, 
and  as  I  was  turning  to  go,  after  her  brother 
had  taken  my  address,  and  promised  that  some 
body  would  hunt  us  up  soon,  she  told  me  to 
wait  a  moment  and  go  with  her  to  a  fruit-stand  ;. 
she  wanted  to  get  something  nice  for  my  sick 
mother  to  eat. 

"And  there  they  bought  all  these  things  ; 
she  the  berries — at  a  dollar  a  box,  mother !  only 
think  of  it ! — and  he  the  oranges  and  crackers 
and  sugar. 

"  Oh,  I  remember  I  saw  her  slip  something 


84  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

into  the  bag  with  the  oranges,  I  wonder  what  it 
was,  I  must  look  !  "  she  exclaimed,  turning 
hastily  to  the  table,  where  she  had  deposited 
the  bag. 

She  took  the  oranges  out  one  by  one  till  the 
bag  was  nearly  empty,  then  catching  sight  of 
something  shining  at  the  bottom,  made  a  dive 
for  it  and  drew  it  out  with  a  little  cry  of  joy. 

"  Oh,  it's  half  a  dollar  !  Now  mother,  you 
shall  have  some  tea  and  a  bit  of  broiled  steak, 
or  a  lamb  chop.  I'll  run  out  to  the  nearest  pro 
vision  store  now  and  get  them." 

She  began  putting  on  her  feat  as  she  spoke. 

"  Child,  you  must  buy  for  yourself  too,"  her 
mother  said,  with  tears  shining  in  her  eyes. 

"  0  mother,  no  !  I  shall  do  nicely  without 
meat,  but  you  are  so  weak  you  must  have  it  to 
strengthen  you." 

She  stepped  to  the  side  of  the  bed  again,  bent 
over  her  mother,  and  kissed  her  tenderly. 

"  Dear  child,  I  cannot  enjoy  it  unless  you 
share  it  with  me ;  you  need  nourishing  food 
quite  as  much  as  I,"  returned  the  mother,  gaz 
ing  fondly  into  the  eyes  looking  so  lovingly  into 
hers.  "  The  Lord  has  sent  us  money  enough  to 
buy  what  we  need  for  to-day,  and  we  will  trust 
him  for  to-morrow.  A  text — a  precious  prom 
ise — has  been  running  in  my  mind  ever  since 
you  came  in  laden  with  so  many  good  things  : 
*  Before  they  call  I  will  answer,  and  while  they 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS  35 

are  yet  speaking  I  will  hear.'  I  had  been  ask- 
ing  him  very  earnestly  to  send  us  help  in  our 
sore  extremity,  and  while  I  was  yet  speaking  it 
came. 

"  O  daughter,  let  us  ever  stay  our  hearts  on 
him,  never  for  a  moment  doubting  his  loving- 
kindness  and  faithfulness  to  his  promises,  no 
matter  how  dark  and  threatening  the  cloud 
may  be." 

"  I'll  try,  mother.  Ah,  I  wish  I  had  your 
faith.  Now  I  must  go  ;  but  I'll  be  back  again 
in  five  or  ten  minutes.  But  I'll  put  some  more 
berries  in  your  saucer,  first,  and  I  don't  want  to 
find  a  single  one  in  it  when  I  come  back,"  she 
added  with  playful  gayety.  "  Aren't  they  mak 
ing  you  feel  a  little  better  already,  you  dear, 
patient  mother  ?  " 

"  Yes,  dear,  they  are  very  refreshing.  But 
you  are  giving  me  more  than  my  fair  share." 

"  No,  indeed,  mamma,  they  were  all  given  to 
you,  and  I  have  eaten  a  good  many.  I  want 
you  to  finish  the  rest,  for  I  do  hope  they  will 
do  more  for  you  than  any  medicine  could. 
Now  I'm  off.  Don't  be  lonesome  while  I'm 
gone,"  and  she  hurried  away  with  a  light,  free 
step,  tears  of  joy  and  thankfulness  shining  in 
her  eyes. 

Not  many  minutes  had  passed  ere  she  returned 
with  the  materials  for  what  was  to  them  a  feast 
indeed. 


36  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"See  mother,"  she  said,  displaying  her  pur 
chases,  "  just  see  how  extravagant  I  have  been  ! 
two  nice  lamb  chops,  two  fresh  eggs,  a  loaf  of 
bread,  half  a  dozen  potatoes,  a  quarter  of  a 
pound  of  tea,  and  five  cents'  worth  of  butter. 
Oh,  but  we  shall  have  a  feast !  I'll  broil  the 
chops,  bake  the  potatoes,  toast  a  few  slices  of 
the  bread,  and  make  you  a  cup  of  tea.  I'd  have 
bought  a  few  cents'  worth  of  milk,  but  I 
remembered  that  you  like  your  tea  quite  as  well 
without." 

"  But  you  don't  drink  tea,  dear,  and  should 
have  bought  some  milk  for  yourself." 

"No,  no,  mother.  I'm  very  fond  of  cold 
water  and  fortunately  a  very  good  article  in 
that  line  can  be  had  for  the  going  after,  no 
farther  than  to  the  hydrant  in  front  of  the  street 
door,"  she  answered  with  a  merry  look  and 
smile. 

As  she  talked  she  was  moving  about  with 
light,  quick  step  between  table  and  stove,  per 
forming  her  tasks  with  the  ease  and  dexterity  of  a 
practiced  hand,  and  without  noise  or  bustle,  her 
mother's  eyes  following  her  with  loving  glances. 

"  You  are  very  bright  and  cheery  to-night, 
dear  child,"  she  said. 

"  Yes,  mother,  I  haven't  been  in  such  spirits 
for  weeks.  I  do  believe  better  days  are  dawn 
ing  for  us,  mother  dear,  and  all  in  answer  to 
your  prayers." 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.  37 

She  paused  at  the  bedside  to  bend  lovingly- 
over  the  dear  parent  and  touch  her  lips  to  the 
pale  cheek. 

"  Yes,  my  Susie,  and  yours  too.  The  Bible 
tells  us  that  God  is  the  hearer  and  answerer  of 
prayer,  and  many  times  I  have  proved  it  in  my 
own  experience  ;  but  he  is  no  respecter  of  per 
sons,  but  ready  to  hear  and  help  any,  however 
humble  and  unworthy,  who  come  in  the  name 
of  Jesus  and  pleading  his  merits." 

"  Yes,  mother,  I  know  it.  I  have  been  pray 
ing  for  help,  and  I'm  sure  he  sent  it ;  and  while 
I  feel  very  grateful  to  that  dear  little  girl  and 
boy,  I'm  thanking  God  with  all  my  heart  for  all 
these  good  things ;  for  they  were  only  his 
messengers,  and  the  gifts  were  more  from  him 
than  from  them  even — the  dear,  kind  children  1 n 


CHAPTER 


THE  sun  was  half  an  hour  high  when  Susaii 
Allen  opened  her  eyes  the  next  morning. 

Her  mother  greeted  her  with  a  smile  and  a 
cheery  "  Good-morning,  my  child.  You  have 
slept  sweetly  ever  since  I  have  been  awake  to 
watch  you,  and  I  have  had  the  best  night's  rest 
I  have  known  for  weeks." 

"  Oh,  I  am  so  glad  to  hear  that,  mother  !  '* 
3usan  exclaimed,  raising  herself  on  hei*  elbow 
to  give  the  invalid  a  searching  look,  "  and  you 
feel  better  and  stronger,  don't  you  ?  " 

"  Yes,  indeed  !  almost  as  if  I  could  sit  up  and 
sew  a  little,  if  we  had  any  work  on  hand." 

"  Oh,  no,  I  should  not  think  of  letting  you  do 
that  yet  !  "  the  girl  answered  ;  "  not  if  we  had 
any  quantity  ;  and  as  we  have  none  at  all,  you 
can  surely  lie  still  quite  contentedly.  Til  get  up 
now  and  have  breakfast  ready  in  a  few  min 
utes. 

"  It  is  only  to  make  a  few  slices  of  toast,  boil 
the  eggs,  and  draw  the  tea.     Then  I'll  tidy  the 
room  and  my  mother  and   myself,  and  we'll  be 
all  ready  to  receive  our  hoped-for  visitors." 
38 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.  38 

"  Yes  ;  we  need  not  expect  them  for  two  or 
three  hours,  at  the  very  earliest,"  Mrs.  Allen 
said  in  reply.  "  Even  if  they  lived  in  town  they 
wouldn't  be  likely  to  come  before  the  middle  of 
the  forenoon,  and  probably  their  home  is  in  the 
country,  as  you  saw  them  getting  out  of  a  car 
riage." 

Events  proved  her  conjectures  correct ;  it  was 
near  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  when  in  an 
swer  to  a  rap  on  the  door  Susan  opened  it,  to  find 
a  lady  and  gentleman  there,  accompanied  by  her 
little  girl  acquaintance  of  the  day  before. 

"  Oh,  yes,  papa,  it's  the  right  place  !  "  ex 
claimed  Lulu,  in  a  veiy  pleased  tone.  "  Susan, 
I've  brought  my  grandma  and  father  to  see 
you." 

"  You  are  all  very  kind  to  come,'*  said  Susan, 
blushing  vividly.  "Will  you  please  walk  in 
and  take  some  seats  ?  " 

She  made  haste  to  bring  forward  the  chairs 
as  she  spoke,  but  with  a  word  of  thanks  Mrs. 
Travilla  and  the  captain  turned  toward  the  in 
valid,  asking  :  "  Is  this  the  sick  mother  Lulu 
has  been  telling  about  ?  " 

"Yes,  ma'am;  yes,  sir,"  said  Susan.  Mrs. 
Allen  adding,  with  a  grateful  look  from  them  to 
Lulu,  "  But  better  already  for  the  kind  gifts  of 
the  little  girl  and  boy.  I  thank  them  from  the 
bottom  of  my  heart.  I  am  very  sure  God  sent 
them  to  our  relief  in  answer  to  prayer.  But, 


40  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

dear  lady,  wont  you  be  seated  ?  and  you,  too, 
sir  ?  "  addressing  the  captain.  "  It  is  extremely 
kind  in  you  to  call  on  us — strangers  and  living 
in  this  poor  and  unpleasant  locality." 

"  It  is  nothing — it  is  a  privilege,  if  in  so  doing 
we  bring  succor  to  one  of  God's  dear  children," 
Grandma  Elsie  replied,  taking  the  wasted  hand 
in  hers  and  seating  herself  close  by  the  bedside. 
"  How  glad  I  am  to  learn  that  you  are  one  of 
his.  I  had  heard  only  that  you  were  ill  and  in 
want." 

"  And  you,  too,  are  his,  dear  lady  ?  Ah,  one 
look  into  your  face  would  tell  us  that." 

"It  is  the  joy  of  my  heart  to  be  numbered 
among  his  followers,  and  to  own  him  as  my 
Lord  and  Master,"  returned  Mrs.  Travilla,  the 
light  of  joy  and  love  shining  in  her  eyes. 

"As  it  is  mine,"  added  the  captain.  "We 
belong  to  one  family,  we  own  one  Lord  and 
King,  and  it  is  his  command  that  we  love  one 
another,  and  that  we  do  good  to  all  men  as  we 
have  opportunity,  '  especially  to  them  who  are 
of  the  household  of  faith  ! ' " 

A  conversation  of  some  length  followed,  in 
which,  by  questions  put  with  delicacy  and  kind 
ness,  Grandma  Elsie  and  her  son-in-law  con 
trived  to  draw  from  Mrs.  Allen  the  story  of  the 
trials  and  struggles  with  poverty  and  privation 
which  had  reduced  her  to  her  present  state  of 
feebleness  and  distress. 


BL8IB  AND  THE  RAYMONDS,  41 

Her  husband  had  been  an  intelligent,  industri 
ous  farmer,  and  working  and  saving  together, 
they  were  looking  forward  with  hope  to  getting 
their  land  clear  of  encumbrance  and  finding 
themselves  in  comfortable  circumstances  by  the 
time  they  should  reach  middle  life;  but  sickness 
entered  the  house,  child  after  child  was  taken 
away,  till  Susan  was  the  only  one  left;  then 
Mr.  Allen  sickened  and  died,  and  the  foreclosure 
of  a  mortgage  robbed  the  widow  and  her 
daughter  of  their  home. 

They  came  to  the  city  seeking  employment 
by  which  to  earn  their  daily  bread,  but  found  it 
scarce  and  ill-paid,  and  had  been  growing  poorer 
and  poorer,  till,  but  for  the  pi'ecious  promises  of 
God's  Word,  they  would  have  been  in  utter  de 
spair. 

Her  listeners  seemed  deeply  interested  ;  tears 
rolled  down  the  cheeks  of  Grandma  Elsie  and 
Lulu  more  than  once  during  the  course  of  the 
narrative,  and  Captain  Raymond  was  evidently 
deeply  moved. 

It  was  he  who  broke  the  momentary  silence 
that  fell  upon  the  little  company  at  the  conclu 
sion  of  the  tale. 

"  This  close,  filthy  alley  is  no  place  for  one 
brought  up  in  the  pure  air  of  the  country;  I 
have  not  the  least  doubt  that  the  tainted  air 
you  breathe  here  is  largely  responsible  for  your 
feeble  condition;  we  must  get  you  out  of  it  as 


42  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

speedily  as  possible.  I  own  a  little  cottage  on 
the  outskirts  of  Union, — a  village  some  two  or 
three  miles  from  us;  it  is  at  present  without  a 
tenant,  and  you  and  your  daughter  may  take 
possession  to-day  if  you  wish  and  feel  strong 
enough  for  the  necessary  exertion." 

"  O  sir,  how  kind,  how  wonderfully  kind  you 
are  !  "  exclaimed  Mrs.  Allen,  as  soon  as  aston 
ishment  would  let  her  speak,  tears  of  joy  and 
thankfulness  coursing  freely  down  her  cheeks. 
"  Country  air  is  what  I  have  been  longing  for 
more  than  words  can  express. 

"  But  you  are  by  far  too  generous  in  offering 
us  a  whole  house;  one  room  will  hold  us  and 
our  few  belongings." 

"  But  will  not  hold  all  that  we  hope  to  see  in 
your  possession  before  very  long,"  he  replied, 
with  a  benevolent  smile  ;  "  your  daughter — and 
you  also  when  you  are  well  enough  to  desire  it — 
shall  be  provided  with  abundance  of  employ 
ment,  at  remunerative  prices,  and  so  will  soon  be 
able  to  gather  about  you  many  more  comforts 
than  I  see  here," — sending  a  sweeping  glance 
about  the  room. 

"And  it  shall  be  my  care,  my  great  pleasure, 
to  anticipate  somewhat  the  time  when  you  will 
be  able  to  provide  such  things  for  yourselves," 
Mrs.  Travilla  said,  rising  to  go,  taking  the  poor 
woman's  hand  in  hers  and  holding  it  for  a 
moment  in  a  kindly  pressure.  "  You  must  be 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  43 

made  as  comfortable  as   possible   without  de. 
lay." 

Mrs.  Allen  tried  to  speak  her  thanks,  but  was 
too  much  overcome  by  emotion. 

"I  shall  send  a  conveyance  for  you  and  your 
goods  day  after  to-morrow,"  the  captain  said, 
as  he  also  rose  to  take  his  departure,  "  and  I 
trust  you  will  be  well  enough  to  bear  the  short 
journey;  but  if  you  are  not,  you  must  not  hesi 
tate  to  say  so,  and  the  opportunity  shall  be 
given  you  again,  whenever  you  send  me  word 
that  you  are  ready." 

"  We  brought  you  some  work,  Susan,"  Lulu 
said,  giving  her  hand  to  the  girl  in  parting  j 
"it  is  down  in  the  carriage." 

"  And  shall  be  sent  up  at  once,"  added  the 
captain. 

"  Oh,  thank  you,  sir  !  "  returned  the  girl. 
"  But,"— looking  from  Lulu  to  Mrs.  Travilla, — 
"  will  I  not  need  some  instruction  in  regard  to 
how  you  want  it  done  ?  " 

"  I  think  not,"  said  the  lady;  "  the  garments 
are  all  cut  and  basted,  and  written  directions 
given  with  them.  If  you  want  more  work 
when  they  are  done  you  have  only  to  ask  for  it. 
But  do  not  over-work  yourself  in  the  effort 
to  accomplish  more  than  your  strength  is 
equal  to." 

With  kindly  good-bys  the  visitors  went, 
refusing  to  allow  Susan  to  accompany  them  to 


44  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

the  outer  door  of  the  house,  saying  that  she  had 
doubtless  to  climb  those  steep  flights  of  stairs 
far  too  often  for  her  good. 

In  a  very  few  moments  a  rap  called  Susan  to 
the  door  again,  to  find  there  a  large  covered 
basket.  No  one  was  with  it,  but  she  heard  the 
retreating  footsteps  of  its  bearer  hurrying  down 
the  stairs. 

She  lifted  it  inside  and  closed  the  door,  then 
began  with  eager,  trembling  hands  to  unpack  it 
and  examine  the  contents. 

There  was  the  promised  roll  of  work,  a  note 
pinned  to  it,  on  opening  which  she  found,  not 
only  the  promised  directions,  but  liberal  pay  in 
advance. 

She  read  the  note  aloud  in  tones  faltering  with 
emotion  and  eyes  so  dimmed  with  tears  that  she 
could  scarcely  see. 

"  Mother,"  she  cried,  "  did  you  ever  hear  of 
such  kind,  generous  people  ?  " 

"  It  is  because  they  are  Christians  ;  they  do  it 
•for  the  dear  Master's  sake,"  responded  Mrs. 
Allen,  her  own  voice  quivering  with  feeling. 

"  I'm  sure  of  it,  mother,  and  that  he  sent  them 
to  help  us  in  our  sore  need.  Just  look  !  just 
look  ! "  as  she  took  out  one  article  after  another 
from  the  basket  and  laid  it  upon  the  table. 
"  How  we  shall  feast  for  the  next  few  days  ! 
here  are  tea,  coffee,  sugar,  a  cold  chicken,  deli- 
•cious  looking  bread  and  rolls,  fresh-laid  eggs  (I 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  45 

am  sure  they're  that  from  their  appearance),  and 
a  pot  of  currant  jelly.  It's  wonderful  how 
many  things  they  have  thought  of  !  I  shall  try 
very  hard  to  do  the  work  to  please  them. 

"  What  a  lovely,  beautiful  lady  Mrs.  Tra villa 
is  !  But  I  don't  know  how  to  believe  she's  really 
grandmother  to  Miss  Lulu." 

"  Perhaps  a  step-grandmother,"  suggested 
Mrs.  Allen.  "  She  can't  be  the  captain's  mother, 
though  I  noticed  he  called  her  that." 

"  What  a  noble-looking  man  he  is  !  and  the 
little  girl!  weren't  you  pleased  with  her, 
mother  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  with  both  her  looks  and  her  behavior." 

The  palatable,  nourishing  food,  and  the  cheer 
ing  prospect  for  the  future  opened  up  before 
her  by  these  new  and  kind  friends,  had  so  bene 
ficial  an  effect  upon  Mrs.  Allen  that  when  the 
captain's  promised  conveyance  came  she  was  up, 
dressed,  and  ready  for  her  journey. 

Great  were  her  surprise  and  gratitude  when 
she  learned  that  he  had  sent  his  own  luxurious 
family  carriage  to  take  her  and  Susan  to  their 
destination,  while  a  wagon  was  to  convey  their 
effects. 

It  was  a  lovely  day,  and  their  drive  took  them 
through  a  beautiful  country,  diversified  by  hill 
and  valley,  meadow  and  woodland,  all  clothed 
in  the  charming  verdure  of  spring ;  now  they 
crossed  a  dancing  streamlet,  now  flew  past  a 


46  ELSIE  AKD  THE  RAYMONDS. 

lordly  dwelling,  with  its  lawn  of  emerald  green 
and  avenue  or  grove  of  noble  trees,  its  culti 
vated  fields  spreading  far  on  either  hand,  now 
traversed  pine  woods  or  skirted  the  banks  of  a 
flowing  river,  and  anon  from  some  slight  emi 
nence  caught  a  distant  view  of  the  ever-restlesg 
sea. 

The  easy  motion  of  the  smoothly  running 
carriage,  the  soft,  sweet  air,  bringing  gratefully 
to  the  nostrils  the  mingled  spicy  odor  of  the 
pines  and  the  refreshing  saltness  of  the  sea,  the 
beautiful  sights  and  sounds  that  greeted  eye  and 
ear,  were  all  so  intensely  enjoyable  to  the  mother 
and  daughter,  after  their  long  sojourn  in  the 
stifling  atmosphere  of  the  close  and  filthy  alley 
they  were  leaving  behind,  that  even  the  invalid 
•was  scarcely  sensible  of  fatigue  until  they  had 
reached  their  destination  and  found  themselves 
in  the  new  home,  which,  though  small  and 
humble,  seemed  to  them  almost  an  earthly 
paradise. 

It  was  a  four-roomed  cottage,  with  a  trim 
little  flower  garden  and  grass  plat  in  front  and 
on  each  side,  fruit  trees,  currant  and  gooseberry 
bushes,  and  space  for  raising  vegetables  at  the 
back.  Porches,  richly  festooned  with  flowering 
vines,  and  two  giant  oaks  that  cast  their  shad 
ows  fi'om  front  gate  to  porch,  made  the  house 
seem  from  the  outside  a  bower  of  beauty,  and 
gave  promise  of  delightful  shelter  from  the  toe 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  47 

fervid  rays  of  the  sun  when  the  sultry  summer 
heats  should  come. 

"  This  surely  cannot  be  the  place  !  "  exclaimed 
Mrs.  Allen,  as  the  carriage  drew  up  at  the 
gate. 

"  No,  hardly,"  said  Susan.  "  Haven't  you 
made  a  mistake  ?  "  addressing  the  coachman. 

"  I  reckon  I  habn't,  Miss  ;  dis  darkey  gin'rally 
knows  what  he's  'bout,"  laughed  the  man. 
"  Dar's  Miss  Elsie  a-settin'  in  de  poach,  an'  hyar 
comes  de  cap'n  fo'  to  help  you  light." 

Captain  Raymond  was  there,  sure  enough, 
hurrying  down  the  path. 

"  Welcome  to  your  new  home,"  he  said,  with 
a  benevolent  smile,  as  he  threw  open  the  car 
riage  door.  "  Mrs.  Allen,  you  must  be  very- 
weary,  though  you  are  looking  much  brighter 
than  when  I  saw  you  the  other  day.  Let  me 
help  you  into  the  house." 

"  5Tou  are  wonderfully  kind,  sir,"  she  returned 
with  feeling,  as  he  lifted  her  out.  "  And,  oh, 
what  a  paradise  you  have  provided  for  us  here  ! 
I  can  .hardly  believe  it  is  really  to  be  our  home  ; 
and  I  feel  that  it  is  far  beyond  our  deserts.  The 
flowers,  the  vines,  the  grand  old  trees,  and  the 
green  grass, — how  lovely  they  all  are  !  " 

"  Yes,"  he  returned  pleasantly ;  "  as  some  one 
has  said,  '  God  made  the  country,  and  man  made 
the  town,'  and  I  for  one  have  no  desire  to  make 
my  home  in  the  man-made  city." 


*S  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

Max  and  Lulu  had  come  racing  down  the  path 
after  their  father,  and  were  now  bringing  up  the 
rear  with  Susan  in  tow. 

"  How  do  you  like  it  ? "  Lulu  was  asking 
eagerly  :  "  is  it  any  improvement  upon  Rose 
Alley  ?  " 

"  Oh,  Miss  Lulu,  it's  too  sweet  and  beautiful 
for  anything  ! "  exclaimed  Susan,  clasping  her 
hands  in  an  ecstasy  of  delight.  "  What  lovely 
flowers,  what  a  delicious  perfume  from  them  ! 
Oh,  I  think  myself  the  happiest  girl  alive,  to  be 
going  to  live  here  !  I  never  dreamed  of  any 
thing  half  so  delightful  ! " 

"  And  Grandma  Elsie  has  made  it  nearly,  if 
not  quite,  as  inviting  indoors  as  out,"  remarked 
Max. 

"  What  a  kind,  kind  lady  ! "  said  Susan,  in 
tones  tremulous  with  grateful  emotion  ;  "  the 
kindest  and  most  generous  I  ever  saw." 

Grandma  Elsie  was  at  that  moment  standing 
at  the  entrance  to  the  porch,  with  hand  out 
stretched  in  friendly  greeting  to  Mrs.  Allen,  and 
to  assist  her  up  the  steps. 

"  Welcome  home,"  she  said,  with  her  owa 
rarely  sweet  smile.  "  I  hope  you  will  find  it  a 
happy  home." 

"Dear  madam,  it  seems  to  me  a  paradise  upon 
«arth,"  returned  the  poor  woman,  tears  of  joy 
and  gratitude  coursing  down  her  wasted  cheeks. 

Her  strength  seemed  giving  way,  and  the  cap 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  49 

tain  half -carried  her  in  and  laid  her  down  on  a 
lounge  which  was  so  placed  that  it  commanded 
a  partial  view  of  each  of  the  four  rooms. 

Parlor,  living-room,  bedroom  were  all  simply 
and  inexpensively,  yet  tastefully,  furnished, 
every  comfort,  including  a  luxuriously  easy 
chair,  provided  for  the  invalid.  White  curtains 
at  the  windows,  and  vases  of  flowers  set  here  and 
there,  lent  an  air  of  elegance  to  the  otherwise 
unpretending,  modest  apartments. 

In  the  neat  little  kitchen  a  tidy,  pleasant-faced 
colored  woman  was  moving  briskly  about,  evi 
dently  preparing  the  evening  meal,  while  in  the 
living-room  a  table  was  laid  for  two. 

It  was  delight  to  Lulu  to  lead  Susan  from 
room  to  room,  calling  her  attention  to  all  the 
beauties  and  conveniences,  and  explaining  that 
Grandma  Elsie  had  provided  this,  papa  or 
Mamma  Vi  that. 

"  Mamma  Vi,"  repeated  Susan  inquiringly  ; 
-*  is  it  your  mother  you  mean  ?  " 

"No — yes,  my  second  mother,  but  not  old 
enough  to  be  really  my  mamma ;  that's  why 
Max  and  I  put  the  Vi  to  it." 

"  Come,  daughter,"  the  captain  said  to  Lulu  as 
she  and  Susan  re-entered  the  parlor,  where  they 
had  left  the  others,  "  put  on  your  hat  ;  we  are 
going  home  now." 

"  Yes,  it  is  time,"  Mrs.  Travilla  said,  taking 
Mrs.  Allen's  hand  in  farewell.  "  We  will  leave 


50  ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

you  to  rest,  my  good  woman,  for  you  look  sadly 
in  need  of  it.  Sally  has  your  supper  nearly 
ready.  I  hope  you  will  both  enjoy  it,  and  she 
will  stay  to  wash  the  dishes  and  set  everything 
to  rights  ,  so  that  you  will  have  no  occasion  for 
exertion  till  to-morrow." 

"  I  think  they  are  very  happy,"  Lulu  remarked, 
as  the  carriage  rolled  away  toward  Woodburn  ; 
"and  how  delightful  it  is  to  be  able  to  make 
other  folks  happy  ! " 

"  Yes,"  said  her  father  ;  "  '  it  is  more  blessed 
to  give  than  to  receive.'  We  should  be  very 
thankful  that  we  are  in  circumstances  to  be 
givers — stewards  of  God's  bounty.  He  has 
given  largely  to  us,  in  order  that  we  may  dis 
tribute  to  others.  He  never  intended  that  we 
should  spend  all  on  ourselves." 


CHAPTER  IV. 

GBANDMA  ELSIE  took  tea  at  Woodburn,  but 
drove  home  to  Ion  directly  after.  Edward,  her 
eldest  son,  met  her  in  the  veranda  with  a  face 
full  of  pleasurable  excitement. 

"  It  is  over,  mamma,"  he  said  ;  "  most  happily 
over ! " 

"  Ah,  how  thankful  I  am !  "  she  exclaimed. 
"  Can  I  see  her  ?  " 

"  Yes,  oh  yes  !  She  is  sleeping,  though,  the 
influence  of  the  ether  having  not  yet  passed 
off." 

" It  is  a  surprise,"  she  said.  "I  should  have 
hastened  home  if  I  had  had  the  least  idea  of 
what  was  going  on.'; 

"  It  was  sudden  and  unexpected ;  rather 
quickly  over,  too,  or  you  should  have  been  sent 
for.  Fortunately  Cousin  Arthur  happened  in 
just  as  I  was  about  to  summon  him." 

"Which  is  it?" 

"  Both,"  he  returned,  with  a  joyous  laugh. 

"  Indeed  !  that  too  is  a  surprise.  But  none 
the  less  delightful." 

He  was  leading  the  way  to  the  suite  of  apart- 
81 


52  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS, 

merits  occupied  by  himself  and  wife,  his  mother 
following. 

They  passed  into  the  bedroom,  where  Zoe  lay 
extended  on  her  couch  in  placid  slumber.  They 
drew  near  and  stood  looking  down  at  her,  each 
face  a  trifle  anxious. 

She  stirred  and  opened  her  eyes  sleepily : 
"Mamma,"  she  murmured,  "Edward — " 

"  Yes,  love,  we  are  both  here,"  he  answered  in 
tender  tones.  Then  bending  over  her  and  press 
ing  a  tender  kiss  upon  her  cheek  :  "  Do  you 
know  how  rich  you  are,  my  darling  ?  " 

"  Rich  ? "  she  repeated  with  a  bewildered 
look  up  into  his  face,  still  only  half  awake. 

"  Yes ;  both  you  and  I ;  we  have  more  than 
doubled  our  wealth  since  you  went  to  sleep  two 
hours  ago." 

"  Oh  !  "  rousing  to  full  consciousness,  "  is  it 
all  over?  Which  is  it?  Show  it  to  me,  do, 
dear." 

"  It's  both,"  he  said,  with  a  low,  gleeful  laugh. 

"  Look  !  they  are  close  beside  you,"  folding 
back  the  covers  of  the  bed,  and  bringing  into 
view  a  pair  of  tiny  forms  and  faces.  "Your 
eon  and  daughter,  young  Mrs.  Travilla." 

She  raised  herself  slightly  to  get  a  better 
view.  "  Oh,  the  darlings,  the  lovely  darlings  ! 
Indeed  we  are  rich  !  You  may  have  the  girl, 
but  the  boy  's  mine,"  she  added,  with  a  silvery 
laugh.  "  But  they're  like  as  two  peas.  If  they 


ELSIE  AND  ?FE  RAYMONDS.  53 

were  both  boys,  or  both  girls,  I  should  p^ver  b« 
»ble  to  tell  them  apart.  So  it's  a  blessing 
they're  one  of  each." 

"There,  lie  down  now,"  he  said.  "They're 
great  treasures,  but  both  together  worth  less  to 
me  than  their  mother  ;  and  I  can't  have  her  run 
ning  any  risks.  Mamma,  dear,  what  do  you 
think  of  your  new  grandchildren  ?  " 

"Just  what  the  new-made  parents  do,"  she 
answered,  bending  over  them  from  the  other  side 
of  the  bed.  "  Welcome,  welcome,  little  strang 
ers  !  there  is  plenty  of  room  in  grandma's  heart 
for  you  both." 

"Our  birthday  gift  to  you,  mamma,"  said 
Zoe. 

"  What,  giving  them  away  already  ?  "  queried 
Edward  playfully,  "  and  that  without  consulting 
me!" 

"  Only  as  grandchildren,"  she  answered  in  the 
same  tone.  "  You  and  I  are  papa  and  mamma. 
Ah,  how  delightfully  odd  it  seems  !  Poor  little 
dears,  to  have  such  a  silly  young  thing  for  their 
mother,"  she  added  sorrowfully,  reaching  out  a 
hand  and  softly  touching  the  tiny  faqes  with 
the  tips  of  her  fingers.  "  But  then  they  have  a 
good  papa,  and  such  a  dear,  wise  grandma. 
Are  yon  pleased  ?  Will  you  take  them  for  your 
birthday  gift  from  me,  mamma  ?  "  lifting  loving, 
entreating  eyes  to  the  sweet  face  of  her  mother- 
in-law. 


54  ELSIE  AND  TEE  RAYMONDS. 

"  Indeed  I  will,  dear  child.  You  could  have 
given  me  nothing  more  acceptable,"  bending 
down  to  touch  her  lips  softly  to  the  velvet 
cheek  of  first  the  one  and  then  the  other. 
"  Which  is  the  boy  and  which  the  girl,  Ned  f  " 

"I  really  don't  know,  mamma,"  he  said, 
laughing,  "  for,  as  their  mother  says,  they  are  as 
like  as  two  peas." 

"  We'll  have  to  put  some  sort  of  mark  on 
them,"  said  Zoe,  gloating  over  her  new  treas 
ures,  "else  one  may  often  be  blamed  for  the 
other's  faults.  Ah,  I  wonder  whether  they  will 
be  wise  and  good  like  their  father,  or  silly  like 
their  mother." 

"  You  are  slandering  their  mother,  and  I  can't 
allow  it,"  Edward  said,  frowning  in  mock  indig 
nation.  "  But  you  weren't  to  talk.  You  must 
be  quiet,  or  I'll  have  to  run  away." 

"  We'll  have  use  for  both  our  names,  Ned," 
remarked  Zoe,  smiling  up  into  her  husband's 
face,  the  next  time  he  came  to  her  bedside. 

"  Yes,"  he  said,  with  a  glance  of  pride  and 
pleasure,  from  her  to  the  little  ones. 

Then  turning  to  his  mother,  "  You  must  un 
derstand,  mamma,  that  we  had  selected  a  suitable 
name  for  the  expected  little  stranger,  whether  it 
should  prove  to  belong  to  the  one  sex  or  the 
other.  Of  course  we  desired  to  name  for  you 
or  my  father  ;  but  there  are  already  so  many 
Elsies  and  Neds  in  the  family  connection  that 


ELSIE  AXD   THE  RAYMONDS.  55 

we  decided  to  add  another  name,  as  you  did  in 
my  case,  to  avoid  confusion  ;  that  if  a  boy,  it 
should  be  named  Edward  Lawrence,  for  both 
Zoe's  father  and  mine,  and  commonly  called 
Laurie  ;  but  if  a  girl,  should  be  Lily,  for  the 
dear  little  sister  who  went  to  heaven  so  many 
years  ago." 

"I  entirely  approve  your  choice,"  said  his 
mother,  her  eyes  shining  through  tears  of  min 
gled  joy  and  sorrow,  as  her  thoughts  were  carried 
back  to  the  husband  and  child  whose  loved  pres 
ence  would  cheer  her  earthly  pilgrimage  no 
more.  "  Laurie  and  Lily  ;  the  two  names  go 
nicely  together.  It  will  be  sweet  to  have  a  Lily 
in  the  family  again,  and  I  trust  she  and  her 
brother  may  be  spared  to  their  parents,  even  to 
be  the  stay  and  staff  of  their  old  age." 

"  How  cunningly  you  have  managed  to  catch 
up  with  Elsie  and  me  in  the  matter  of  providing 
mamma  with  grandchildren,"  was  Violet's  jest 
ing  remark  to  Zoe,  when  she  came  for  the  first 
time  to  look  at  the  new  arrivals. 

"  Yes,  haven't  I  ?  "  laughed  Zoe.  "  We  have 
two  apiece  now,  making  six  in  all.  Mamma 
says  she  is  growing  rich  in  grandchildren." 

"  Six  of  her  own,  and  four  others  who  address 
her  by  that  title,  though  it  has  always  seemed 
ridiculous  to  me,  considering  how  young  my 
darling  mother  looks." 

"  Yes,  to  me  too.     But  these  darlings  are  her 


56  ELSIE  A2H)  THE  RAYMONDS. 

yery  own  and — Vi,  don't  you  think  they're  the 
•weetest  things  that  ever  were  made  ?  " 

"  O  Zoe,  don't  ask  quite  so  much  as  that  of 
me  !  "  returned  Violet,  with  playful  look  and 
smile.  ."  I  do  really  think  them  as  sweet  aa 
they  can  be,  but  my  own  two  no  less  so  !  " 

"  Oh,  of  course  !  "  laughed  Zoe.  "  It  was  just 
like  my  silliness  to  ask  such  a  question.  I  tell 
mamma  they  are  Ned's  and  my  birthday  gift  to 
her  ;  though  they  came  three  weeks  before  the 
time." 

"  They'll  not  be  less  worth  having  for  being 
three  weeks  old,"  remarked  Violet. 

"No  ;  they  develop  new  beauties  every  day. 
Mamma  herself  says  so.  And  I  am  glad  there  is 
time  for  me  to  recover  sufficiently  to  enjoy  the 
festivities  of  the  occasion." 

Zoe  hovering  over  her  babies  made  a  pretty 
picture  to  look  upon.  She  would  scarcely  let 
them  out  of  her  sight  ;  rejoiced  over  them  with 
singing  and  laughter,  full  of  mirth  and  glad 
ness,  as  though  the  veriest  child  herself.  Yet  at 
times  her  mood  changed,  her  face  wore  a  pen 
sive  expression  akin  to  sadness,  and  caressing 
them  with  exceeding  tenderness,  she  would 
murmur  softly  : 

"  My  wee  bit  darlings,  my  precious  treasures, 
what  trials  and  sufferings  may  be  yours  before 
you  reach  the  end  of  life's  long  journey  !  Ah, 
if  your  mother  might  but  bear  all  your  paina 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.  57 

and  troubles  for  you,  how  gladly  she  would 
do  it." 

"  Dear  daughter,"  Grandma  Elsie  said  on 
overhearing  the  words  one  day,  "  that  is  one  of 
the  cares  we  are  privileged  to  cast  on  Jesus.  He 
dearly  loves  the  little  ones,  and  he  has  all  power 
in  heaven  and  in  earth.  '  I  will  be  a  God  to 
thee,  and  to  thy  seed  after  thee,'  is  one  of  the 
many  great  and  precious  promises  of  his  Word. 
*  Train  up  a  child  in  the  way  he  should  go,  and 
when  he  is  old  he  will  not  depart  from  it.' 
Seek  wisdom  for  that  work  by  prayer  and  the 
etudy  of  God's  word." 

"I will, mamma,"  Zoe answered  thoughtfully. 
"  I  am  quite  sure  Edward  will  make  a  good  father, 
and  I  shall  try  very  hard  to  be  a  good  mother  ; 
I  shall  take  you,  dear  mamma,  for  my  pattern, 
for  there  couldn't  be  a  better  mother  than  you 
are,  and  always  have  been." 

"  I  have  tried  to  be — tried  in  the  way  I  have 
recommended  to  you — but  I  sometimes  made 
mistakes,  and  I  would  have  you  follow  me  only 
in  so  far  as  I  have  followed  Christ,  and  the 
teachings  of  his  Word,"  Grandma  Elsie  answered, 
in  sincere  humility. 

"Mamma,"  said  Zoe,  "I  do  not  believe  it 
possible  for  any  frail  human  creature  to  follow 
more  closely  in  the  Master's  footsteps  than  you 
do." 

The  Ion  twins  were  objects  of  great  interest 


58  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

to  all  the  children  of  the  connection,  and  from 
the  first  news  of  their  arrival  they  were  eager 
to  see  them.  It  was  not  allowed,  however,  till 
the  proud  young  mother  was  able  to  exhibit 
them  herself. 

Rosie  and  Walter  had  of  course  a  look  at 
them  on  the  day  of  their  birth,  but  they  were 
nearly  two  weeks  old  before  the  others  were  ad 
mitted  to  Zoe's  room,  where  she  insisted  on 
keeping  her  precious  treasures  all  the  time. 

The  Woodburn  children  were  anxious  for 
their  turn,  and  at  last  it  came.  Lulu  and  Grace 
rode  over  to  Ion  one  pleasant  afternoon,  on  their 
ponies,  Fairy  and  Elf,  the  captain  and  Max  ac 
companying  them  on  their  larger  steeds. 

The  little  girls  did  not  know  when  they 
started  that  Ion  was  their  destination,  and  on 
arriving  were  still  in  doubt  whether  they  were 
to  see  the  babies  ;  but  the  greetings  were 
scarcely  over  when  they  asked  if  they  might. 

"  Yes  ;  Zoe  is  feeling  very  well  to-day,  and  I 
think  it  will  do  her  no  harm  to  see  you  all  for  a 
few  moments,"  replied  Grandma  Elsie,  leading 
the  way.  "  You  may  come,  too,  Captain  ;  Zoe 
is  always  delighted  with  an  opportunity  to  ex 
hibit  her  treasures." 

"  Thank  you,  mother,  I  accept  your  invitation 
with  pleasure,"  he  answered,  following  with  his 
children. 

Zoe,  lying  on  a  couch  with  a  dainty  crib  close 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  59 

beside  her,  greeted  her  visitors  with  smiles  and 
words  of  welcome. 

"  It  seems  an  age  since  Hast  saw  your  pleasant 
countenance,  Captain,"  she  said,  as  he  took  her 
hand. 

"  You  could  hardly  miss  me  with  such  com- 
panionship  as  you  have  here,"  he  returned  play 
fully,  as  he  bent  over  the  crib  and  took  » 
scrutinizing  look  at  its  tiny  occupants.  "They 
are  really  worth  showing,  little  mother." 

"I  should  say  they  were,"  she  responded, 
laughing  ;  a  low,  gleeful,  silvery  laugh. 

Grandma  Elsie  had  led  Lulu  and  Grace  to  the 
other  side  of  the  crib.  "  O  Aunt  Zoe,  what 
lovely  little  darlings  !"  they  both  exclaimed. 
"  And  it's  such  a  pretty  sight,  two  babies  just 
the  same  size  and  exactly  alike  ! " 

"  So  it  is,"  said  the  captain,  but  added  play 
fully,  "both  together,  though,  would  hardly 
make  one  of  our  Ned ;  so  Aunt  Zoe  need  not 
propose  to  swap." 

"Aunt  Zoe  has  not  the  remotest  idea  of 
making  such  a  proposition,"  she  returned  gay- 
ly.  "No,  indeed,  mother's  darlings,"  raising 
herself  on  one  elbow  that  she  might  have  a  good 
look  at  each  tiny  face,  "  you  needn't  fret," — 
for  one  stirred  in  its  sleep  and  gave  a  faint 
little  cry — "  no  one  could  persuade  mamma  to 
give  even  one  of  you  for  the  biggest  baby  in 
the  land." 


60  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  Was  that  Laurie  ?  or  Lily,  Aunt  Zoe 9 " 
asked  Lulu.  "  Such  pretty  names  as  you  have 
given  them  ! " 

"  Yes,  I  think  so.  It  was  Laurie  that  cried 
out  then  ;  he's  not  so  quiet  as  Lily  ;  but  one 
must  expect  a  boy  to  make  more  noise  in  the 
world  than  a  girl." 

"  But  how  can  you  tell  which  is  which,  Aunt 
Zoe,"  queried  Grace  ;  "  they  look  exactly  alike 
to  me." 

"  To  me  too  ;  but  see,  we  have  put  a  gold 
chain  round  Lily's  neck,  and  Laurie  has  none." 

"  Ah,  no  wonder  he  cries  out  at  such  favori 
tism,"  remarked  the  captain  sportively. 

"  Sure  enough  !  "  exclaimed  Zoe  ;  "  strange  I 
had  not  thought  of  it  before.  But  he  shall  have 
that  excuse  no  longer  ;  he  shall  wear  that  lovely 
necklace  of  pink  coral  beads  Ned  gave  me  on 
my  last  birthday.  Lu,  if  you  will  go  to  my 
jewel-case  and  get  it,  I'll  be  much  obliged." 

"I  will,  Aunt  Zoe  ;  I'm  delighted  with  the 
errand,"  exclaimed  Lulu,  hurrying  into  the  ad 
joining  dressing-room. 

She  haTl  been  there  often  enough  to  know 
where  to  find  what  she  had  been  sent  for,  and 
was  back  again  in  a  moment  with  it  in  her 
hand. 

"  Thank  you,  Lu.  Hand  it  to  mamma,  please,'* 
said  Zoe.  "  She  will  put  it  on  him  ;  I'd  like  to 
do  it  myself,  but  presume  I  wouldn't  be  allowed  * 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  «1 

they  are  all  so  exceedingly — I'd  almost  said  ab 
surdly — careful  of  me." 

"  It  would  be  better  for  you  not  to  make  the 
effort,  my  dear,"  Grandma  Elsie  said,  taking  the 
necklace  from  Lulu's  hand. 

All  eyes  were  upon  her  as  she  gently  raised 
the  tiny  head  just  enough  to  enable  her  to  slip 
it  under  and  around  the  child's  neck,  then  fast 
ened  the  clasp  in  front. 

"  I  don't  know,"  she  remarked  in  a  doubtful 
tone,  "  that  he  will  be  quite  as  comfortable  with 
as  without  it,  and  I'm  positively  certain  he  will 
not  appreciate  the  honor." 

The  babe  was  fast  asleep,  and  did  not  rouse 
himself  to  give  his  opinion. 

Rosie  had  come  softly  into  the  room,  and 
was  standing  beside  the  crib  with  the  others. 

"  Aren't  they  the  loveliest,  darlingest  wee  pete 
that  ever  were  seen  ?  "  she  exclaimed.  "  I  think 
it  would  be  delightful  to  have  one  baby  in  the 
house — really  belonging  here — but  to  have  two 
such  pretty  pets  is  doubly  delightful." 

"  Yes,  but  I  think  you'll  find  it  better  still 
when  they're  grown  to  be  as  large  at  ours,  and 
can  run  about  and  talk,"  said  Lulu.  "  They  do 
say  such  smart  things  sometimes." 

"  Yes  ;  what  fun  it  will  be  when  these  two 
begin  to  talk  !  "  Zoe  exclaimed,  with  a  low, 
gleeful,  happy  laugh,  touching  each  tiny  faoe 
caressingly. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  celebration  of  Grandma  Elsie's  approach 
ing  semi-centennial  was  now  the  most  important 
event  in  the  near  future,  the  principal  theme  of 
conversation  in  the  connection,  and  grand  prep 
arations  for  it  were  going  forward. 

By  her  expi-esswish,  all  the  poor  of  the  neigh 
borhood — white  and  black,  in  two  distinct  as 
semblies — were  invited  to  spend  a  large  part  of 
the  day  on  the  plantation,  amusing  themselves 
with  outdoor  games  and  enjoying  a  bountiful 
feast  spread  for  them  in  the  shade  of  the  wood 
in  which  Mr.  Leland,  the  uncle  of  the  present 
occupant  of  Fairview,  had  once  concealed  him 
self  when  attacked  by  the  Ku  Klux. 

Another  party,  consisting  of  all  the  relatives, 
connections,  and  intimate  friends  residing  in  the 
vicinity,  would  be  given  the  freedom  of  the 
house  and  grounds  to  enjoy  themselves  as  they 
ahould  please. 

Circumstances  were  auspicious  ;  all  the  prep 
arations  had  been  thoroughly  well  attended  to  ; 
the  day  dawned  bright  and  beautiful,  and  found 
every  one  in  high  health  and  spirits. 

She  whom  all  were  seeking  to  honor  and  make 
62 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  6J 

the  happiest  of  the  happy,  awoke  with  a  heart 
full  of  love  and  gratitude  for  the  unnumbered 
mercies  and  blessings  of  her  lot  in  life.  Her 
first  act  was  to  rise  from  her  bed,  and,  kneeling 
beside  it,  pour  out  her  thanksgivings  and  praises, 
mingled  with  confession  of  sins,  petitions  for 
herself  and  others,  and  a  renewal  of  her  oft-re 
peated  consecration  to  His  service. 

She  had  scarce  completed  her  morning  toilet, 
singing  the  while  in  low,  sweet  strains,  a  song  of 
praise,  when  a  light  tap  at  the  door  was  followed 
by  her  father's  entrance. 

He  folded  her  in  his  arms,  and  holding  her 
close  to  his  heart,  wished  her,  in  moved  tones, 
many  happy  returns  of  the  day. 

"  I  know  not  how  to  believe  that  you  have 
seen  fifty  years,"  he  said,  holding  her  off  a  little 
to  gaze  searchingly  into  her  face, — still  as  sweet, 
and  well-nigh  as  fair  and  smooth,  as  it  had  been 
thirty  years  before — "  there  are  no  silver  threads 
in  your  hair,  no  lines  on  your  forehead,  or  about 
your  eyes  or  mouth  ;  you  are  no  less  beautiful 
than  you  were  in  your  early  girlhood  ;  my  dar 
ling's  charms  have  only  matured,  not  lessened." 

"  Ah,  papa,"  she  returned,  shaking  her  head 
with  an  incredulous  smile,  "  you  always  did  see 
me  through  rose-colored  glasses.  I  dare  say  any 
eyes  but  yours — so  blinded  by  love — can  read- 
ily  perceive  many  traces  left  by  the  passing 
years. 


64  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"Yet,  dear  father,  why  should  we  regret  it? 
Why  care  that  we  are  both  growing  old,  eince 
each  day  as  it  passes  brings  us  a  step  nearer  to 
our  heavenly  home." 

"  That  is  a  delightful  thought,"  he  responded, 
with  a  smile  and  a  sigh  ;  "  a  thought  that  more 
than  reconciles  me  to  the  inevitable  in  my  own 
case." 

"  And  surely  in  mine,  too,  papa,  for  you  would 
not  want  to  be  in  heaven  without  me,"  she  said, 
creeping  closer  into  his  embrace  and  half  hid 
ing  her  face  on  his  breast. 

"  No,"  he  replied  with  emotion,  tightening 
the  clasp  of  his  arm  about  her  waist  and  press 
ing  his  lips  again  and  again  to  her  cheek  and 
brow,  "  not  for  long  ;  but  in  the  course  of  na 
ture  I  shall  probably  be  called  away  first,  and 
for  your  children's  sake  I  hope  you  may  yet 
live  many  years,  and  that  those  years  may  be 
for  you  as  free  as  possible  from  the  infirmities 
of  age." 

"  And  it  is  that  I  wish  for  you,  dear  father, 
for  your  children's  sake  ;  my  own  especially,'* 
she  returned,  gazing  lovingly  into  his  eyes. 

Another  tap  at  the  door,  and  Edward  and 
Zoe  entered,  each  carrying  a  baby. 

"Here  we  come,  mamma,  with  your  birthday 
gifts,"  cried  Zoe  gayly,  "  and  wishing  you  many, 
many  happy  returns  of  the  day." 

"  Thank  you,  my  dears  ;  but  O  Zoe,  this  it 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  65 

too  much  exertion  for  you  !  you  should  not 
have  done  it,  my  child  !  "  Elsie  answered,  step 
ping  hastily  forward  and  taking  little  Laurie 
from  his  young  mother's  arms,  while  Zoe  sank 
into  an  easy-chair,  panting  a  little,  the  color 
coming  and  going  in  her  cheeks. 

"  The  nurse  carried  him  to  the  very  door, 
mamma,"  she  said  ;  "  and  I  thought  I  was 
stronger  than  I  am." 

"  It  is  my  f aiilt, — I  should  not  have  allowed 
it,"  said  Edward,  looking  anxiously  at  Zoe. 

"Don't  be  alarmed,  my  dear  ;  I  am  not  in 
jured  in  the  least,"  she  responded,  smiling  up 
into  his  face  as  he  stood  over  her,  forgetting 
everything  else  in  concern  for  her.  "  You 
haven't  presented  your  half  of  the  gift  to  mam 
ma  ;  nor  any  good  wishes  either." 

"  As  if  both  halves  didn't  belong  to  both  of 
us,"  he  responded,  with  an  amused  smile. 
"Mamma,  I  wish  you  many,  many  happy  re 
turns  of  the  day,  and  beg  to  present  you  with 
what  I  consider  a  priceless  treasure — my  little 
daughter,  your  youngest  granddaughter,"  lay- 
ins:  the  babe  in  the  arms  she  held  out  to  re- 

o 

eeive  it,  having  already  resigned  the  other  to 
its  great-grandsire. 

"  They  are  indeed  priceless  treasures,  and  very 
dear  to  their  grandmamma's  heart,"  she  said, 
cuddling  it  close  in  her  arms  and  pressing  kisses 
on  the  tiny  velvet  cheek. 


«6  ELSIE  AND    THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  Now,  mamma,  it's  Laurie's  turn,"  remarked 
the  young  mother  laughingly  ;  "  you  didn't 
take  time  to  kiss  him,  in  your  concern  for  me, 
and  it  will  never  do  to  be  partial." 

"  No,  certainly  not,"  Grandma  Elsie  said,  ex 
changing  babies  with  her  father,  "  but  they  are 
so  exactly  alike  in  looks  that  one  will  have  to 
be  a  little  careful  to  make  sure  of  avoiding  such 
a  mistake." 

But  now  came  Mrs.  Dinsmore,  Rosie,  and 
"Walter  with  their  congratulations  and  good 
wishes. 

The  scene  was  a  lively  one  for  a  little  while  ; 
then  the  old  people,  and  Zoe  and  Edward  with 
their  babies,  withdrew,  leaving  Grandma  Elsie 
alone  with  the  youngest  two  of  her  flock. 

They  spent  a  short  time  together  in  the  usual 
way,  then  the  breakfast  bell  rang,  and  at  the 
same  moment  the  family  carriage  drove  up  to 
the  door  bringing  her  college  boys,  who  had  ar 
rived  in  the  village  by  an  early  train  which  the 
carriage  had  been  sent  to  meet." 

Each  in  turn  must  hold  his  mother  in  a  long, 
tender  embrace  ;  then  greetings  with  the  others 
were  to  be  exchanged,  questions  asked  and  an 
swered  on  both  sides  ;  so  that  it  was  some  time 
before  any  attention  was  paid  to  the  summons 
to  the  breakfast-table ;  and  when  they  did 
gather  about  the  board  the  flow  of  talk  was 
such  as  to  seriously  interfere  with  the  business 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.  67 

of  eating,  so  that  the  meal  was  prolonged  to 
twice  its  ordinary  length. 

Zoe,  down  for  the  first  time  since  the  advent 
of  the  twins,  was  smiling,  happy,  eager  to  show 
her  darlings  to  the  young  uncles. 

They  had  already  given  congratulations  by 
letter  to  her  and  Edward,  and  had  not  been 
many  minutes  in  their  company  before  renewing 
them. 

"  I  am  quite  in  haste  to  see  my  new  niece  and 
nephew,"  said  Harold.  "  I  presume,  Zoe,  they 
are  the  prettiest,  brightest,  sweetest  wee  mor 
tals  that  ever  were  seen.  Isn't  it  so  ?  " 

"  Of  course  they  are  to  their  mother,"  she 
answered  laughingly,  "  but  she  doesn't  expect 
anybody  else,  except  papa," — with  an  arch  look 
at  Edward — "  to  see  the  darlings  through  the 
same  rose-colored  glasses.  You  and  Herbert 
shall  judge  for  yourselves  presently  though;  they 
will  be  on  exhibition  as  soon  as  prayers  are  over." 

"  We  may  judge  for  ourselves,  you  say,  Zoe, 
but  dare  we  express  our  opinions  freely,  should 
they  not  coincide  with  that  of  the  parents?'* 
queried  Herbert,  in  a  bantering  tone. 

"  At  a  safe  distance  I  think  you  may  venture," 
returned  Zoe  demurely. 

"  But  Zoe  wont  be  the  only  one  to  take  part 
with  Laurie  and  Lily  should  anybody  have  the 
bad  taste  to  utter  a  word  in  depreciation  of  them," 
remarked  Rosie  warningly. 


68  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  And  yet  this  is  called  a  free  country  !  "  ex- 
elaimed  Harold,  with  an  expressive  shrug  of  his 
shoulders. 

"  Ion's  to  be  a  monarchy  to-day,"  remarked 
Walter.  "Mamma's  to  be  crowned  queen  of  it 
in  the  arbor." 

"  Indeed !  "  exclaimed  his  mother  in  sur 
prise  and  amusement.  "It  is  the  first  hint 
I  have  had  that  such  doings  were  in  contem 
plation." 

"  Yes,  mamma,"  said  Rosie,  "  we  have  been 
keeping  it  a  secret  from  you,  and  Walter's  com 
munication  is  a  little  premature.  But  it  really 
doesn't  signify,  for  you  would  have  had  to  know 
very  soon." 

"  Yes,  I  suppose  so,  for  some  of  our  guests — 
the  nearest  relations  at  least — will  soon  begin 
to  arrive.  But  when  is  this  important  cere 
mony  to  take  place  ?  " 

"  I  suppose  as  soon  as  the  guests  are  all  here, 
mamma." 

"The  other  ceremony — the  presentation  of 
the  babies  to  their  newly  arrived  uncles — wi!} 
be  gone  through  with  first,  doubtless  ?  "  Harold 
remarked,  in  an  inquiring  tone. 

"  Oh,  yes  ;  of  course,"  answered^several  voices, 
aa  they  all  rose  from  the  table  and  withdrew  to 
the  library  to  unite  in  the  usual  morning  wor- 
•hip. 

Th«  babies'   dainty  crib   had  been  brought 


ELSIE  AXD   THE  RAYMONDS.  69 

down  to  an  adjoining  room  for  the  day,  and 
there  they  lay  sweetly  sleeping. 

As  soon  as  the  short  service  had  come  to  an 
end,  Zoe,  motioning  to  Harold  and  Herbert  to 
follow,  led  the  way  to  the  side  of  the  crib,  and 
laying  back  the  cover  brought  the  two  tiny  forms 
to  view  lying  side  by  side,  the  little  plump 
faces  turned  toward  each  other,  round,  rosy,  and 
dimpled. 

"There,  aren't  they  beauties,  boys?"  ex 
claimed  Zoe,  bending  over  her  treasures  in  a 
perfect  rapture  of  mother-love  and  admiration. 
"  Did  you  ever  see  anything  half  so  sweet  ?  " 

"  Well,  really,  they  are  quite  passable,  consid 
ering  their  extreme  youth,"  returned  Harold 
sportively.  "  I  say,  Ned,  what  would  you  take 
for  them  ?  " 

"  They  are  not  in  the  market,  sir,"  replied  the 
young  father,  regarding  them  with  pride  and 
admiration.  "  Though  you  should  offer  every 
dollar  you  possess  it  would  be  utterly  con- 
temned." 

"  Ah,  'tis  just  as  well,  Ned,  for  I  should  not 
know  what  to  do  with  such  tender,  delicate 
little  morsels  of  humanity  if  I  had  them." 

"  You  don't  half  appreciate  them,"  said  Zoe, 
half  jestingly,  half  in  earnest,  "  you  don't  de 
serve  the  honor  of  being  their  uncle." 

"We'll  enjoy  and  appreciate  them  more  a 
year  or  two  hence,  when  they  can  be  romped 


TO  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

and  played  with,"  remarked  Herbert.  "  But, 
really,  Zoe,  they're  as  pretty  as  any  young  baby 
I  ever  saw." 

Rosie  looked  in  at  the  door  with  the  an 
nouncement,  "  The  Woodburn  carriage  is  com 
ing  up  the  avenue,"  and  the  three  brothers  hur 
ried  out  to  greet  its  occupants.  They  were  the 
whole  Raymond  family,  from  the  captain  down 
to  baby  Ned,  and  scarcely  had  greetings  been 
exchanged  with  them  when  the  Lelands  from 
Fairview  arrived,  and  Grandma  Elsie  had  all  her 
children  about  her. 

She  was  the  centre  of  attraction  ;  everybody 
had  an  embrace,  good  wishes,  and  a  gift  for  her, 
and  all  were  most  graciously  received. 

But  her  daughters  presently  hurried  her  away 
to  her  private  apartment,  where  they  busied 
themselves  in  attiring  her  for  the  day  in  such 
manner  as  suited  their  own  ideas  of  what  would 
be  most  fitting  and  becoming,  she  smilingly  sub 
mitting  to  their  will. 

"  You  must  wear  white,  mamma,"  said  Violet; 
"  nothing  could  be  more  suitable  to  the  weather 
or  more  becoming  to  you.  Do  you  not  say  so, 
Elsie  ?  " 

"Yes,"  replied  Mrs.  Leland,  opening  her 
mother's  wardrobe  and  glancing  over  the  dresses 
hanging  there  ;  "  and  it  will  please  grandpa 
better  than  anything  else.  Tliei-e,"  taking  down 
a  nun's  veiling,  "this  is- just  the  thing." 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  11 

u  My  dears,  remember  bow  many  years  have 
flown  over  your  mother's  head,  and  don't  dress 
me  too  youthfully,"  Grandma  Elsie  said,  with 
an  amused  look  and  smile. 

"  Never  fear,  mamma,"  returned  Violet  in  hei 
sprightly  way,  "how  can  you  fear  for  a  mo 
ment  that  your  daughters  would  do  such  dis 
credit  to  the  training  of  so  good  and  wise  a 
mother  as  theirs  ?  " 

"  What  ornaments  shall  mamma  wear  ?  "  asked 
Rosie. 

"  Only  flowers — natural  flowers,"  returned  her 
sisters,  both  speaking  at  once. 

"  Oh,  yes ;  and  they  must  be  roses  and  lilies  | 
a  knot  of  them  at  her  throat,  and  another  at  her 
waist.  I'll  go  and  get  them  myself,"  exclaimed 
Rosie,  hurrying  from  the  room. 

In  one  of  the  lower  apartments  of  the  mansion 
she  found  Zoe,  Edward,  and  his  brothers,  Mr. 
Leland  and  Evelyn,  Captain  Raymond  and  his 
children,  all  busy  with  flowers  from  conservato 
ries,  gardens,  fields,  and  woods,  which  were  piled 
in  fragrant  heaps  upon  tables  and  in  baskets, 
making  them  into  bouquets,  wreaths,  garlands, 
and  arranging  them  in  vases. 

With  deft  fingers  Zoe  was  weaving  a  beauti 
ful  wreath. 

"  Oh,  Zoe,  how  lovely  ! "  exclaimed  Rosie, 
"It  is  to  be  mamma's  crown,  isn't  it  ?" 

**  Yes  ;  and  everything  in  it  has  a  meaning  j 


72  ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

these  laurel  leaves  are  to  say  to  mamma,  and 
everybody,  that  she  is  the  glory  of  this  house  ; 
this  calla  lily,  that  she  is  beautiful  (though 
of  course  no  one  who  looks  at  her  can  help 
seeing  that  without  being  told);  this  sweet 
alyssum,  that  she  has  worth  beyond  beauty  ; 
this  white  jessamine,  that  she  is  amiability  it 
self  ;  the  yellow,  that  she  has  grace  and  ele 
gance  ;  this  china  rose  means  the  same ;  this 
moss  rose,  superior  merit ;  this  myrtle,  that  we 
all  love  her  dearly,  dearly  !  " 

"  Oh,  what  a  nice  story  they  tell ! "  exclaimed 
Rosie  ;  "  the  wreath  has  my  entire  approval," 
she  added,  with  a  merry  laugh. 

"  What  a  relief  to  my  mind  !  "  said  Zoe,  join- 
ing  in  the  laugh.  "  We're  going  to  make  a 
perfect  bower  of  the  dining-room,  the  only  room 
in  the  house  that  will  be  much  used  by  the  com 
pany  to-day. 

"That's  a  nice  idea ;  we  must  have  flowers  every 
where  to-day  in  mamma's  honor.  I  have  come  to 
select  some  for  the  adornment  of  her  person." 

"  This  is  for  that  very  purpose,"  said  Zoe, 
holding  up  her  nearly  completed  wreath,  and 
regarding  it  with  satisfaction. 

"  Yes,  I  know  ;  but  I  want  a  knot  of  flowers 
for  her  throat,  and  another  for  her  belt.  Roses, 
lilies,  and  heliotrope." 

"  Grandma  Elsie  is  versed  in  the  language  of 
flowers,  isn't  she  ?  "  asked  Evelyn. 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.  73 

"  Yes,  indeed  !  "  answered  Rosie. 

"  Oh,  then,  wouldn't  it  be  a  nice  idea  for  each 
of  us  to  select  a  few  flowers  expressing  our  feel 
ings  of  love,  admiration,  and  so  forth  ;  then, 
after  Grandpa  Dinsmore  has  put  the  crown  on 
her  head,  go  one  at  a  time,  kneel  before  her  on 
one  knee,  kiss  her  hand,  and  present  the  little 
floral  offering  ?  " 

"  Capital  !  "  Quite  a  bright  thought,  Eva  !  " 
"  Just  the  thing  ! "  exclaimed  several  voices,  in 
response  to  the  suggestion. 

"  Oh,  let's  do  it  !  "  said  Lulu.  "  I  think  it 
would  be  ever  so  nice  ! " 

"  All  in  favor  say  aye,"  sair5  Harold. 

A  chorus  of  "  Ayes,"  in  response, 

"  Contrary,  no  !  " 

A  dead  silence. 

"  The  ayes  have  it,"  he  announced  ;  "  but  of 
course  everybody  is  at  liberty  to  do  exactly  aa 
he  or  she  pleases." 

"  I  don't  know  anything  about  the  language 
of  flowers,"  remarked  Grace  shyly. 

"And  my  memory  needs  refreshing  on  the 
subject,"  Herbert  said,  smiling  pleasantly  on 
the  little  girl.  "  So  I'll  bring  a  book  from  the 
library  that  will  tell  us  what  we  want  to  know." 

"  Will  it  be  objectionable  if  several  of  us 
choose  the  same  flower  ?  "  asked  Lulu. 

"  Oh  no,  not  at  all,"  replied  Harold.  I  shall 
take  some  of  these  beautiful  pinks.  This  on« 


?4  ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

means  pure  affection  ;  this  clove  pink,  dignity  ; 
this  double  red,  pure,  ardent  love  ;  this  white 
one, '  You  are  fair.'  I  should  like  to  say  all  that 
to  mamma," 

"  So  should  I,"  said  Grace.  "  May  I  take  some 
of  the  same  flowers,  Uncle  Harold  ?  " 

"  Surely,  dear  child,"  he  returned,  selecting 
them  for  her. 

"  A  bit  of  myrtle,  too,  please,  she  said  ; 
"  because  I  do  love  Grandma  Elsie  dearly." 

"  I  want  a  bit  of  that,  too,"  Lulu  said,  "  and  all 
the  kinds  of  lilies  and  roses  that  mean  something 
nice.  I  do  think  they  are  the  loveliest  flowers ! " 

"  I'll  have  heliotrope,  '  I  love  you,'  pansy, 
*  Think  of  me,'  purple  heartsease,  some  of  the 
myrtle,  and  honeysuckle,  '  bond  of  love,' " 
Evelyn  said,  after  consulting  the  book  Herbert 
had  brought,  and  culling  them  from  the  fragrant 
heaps  as  she  spoke. 

In  the  mean  time  Rosie  had  made  up  the  two 
bouquets  she  had  come  for.  "  See  !  "  she  said, 
holding  them  up  to  view,  "  aren't  these  roses  and 
lilies  just  the  perfection  of  beauty  ?  They'll  put 
the  finishing  touch  to  mamma's  attire,  and  I'll 
be  back  presently  to  select  others  as  my  offering 
to  the  queen  of  the  day." 

So  saying  she  tripped  gayly  away. 

"  There,  the  crown  is  done  !  "  said  Zoe,  turn* 
ing  it  about  in  her  hands  and  viewing  it  with  a 
satisfied  smile. 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.  75 

The  others  pronounced  it  beautiful. 

"  Now  I'll  help  with  the  wreaths  for  the 
rooms." 

"  No,  no,  my  dear,  you  have  exerted  yourself 
quite  enough  for  one  day,"  said  her  husband. 
"  Just  lie  back  'in  that  easy-chair  and  give  as 
many  directions  as  you  please." 

"  Nonsense  !  "  she  exclaimed,  laughing,  "  you 
are  as  careful  of  me  as  if  I  were  made  of  the 
finest  china  or  glass." 

"  A  great  deal  more  so,"  he  returned,  with  a 
look  that  spoke  volumes  of  loving  appreciation, 
and  bending  over  her  to  bring  his  lips  close  to 
her  ear,  "  Your  price  is  above  rubies,  my  dar 
ling,"  he  added,  in  a  low  aside. 

"  Dear  Ned,  you  are  so  good  to  me  !  "  she  re 
sponded,  lifting  to  his  eyes  as  full  of  love  as  hi  a 
own. 

"  The  queen  of  the  day  !  the  queen  of  all  our 
hearts ! "  announced  Rosie,  preceding  her 
mother  and  sisters  into  the  room. 

u  We  are  all  ready  to  do  her  homage,"  said 
the  captain,  stepping  forward  and  saluting  his 
mother-in-law  with  much  respect  and  affection. 

The  others  were  prompt  to  follow  his  example, 
all  crowding  about  her  with  expressions  of  love 
and  admiration. 

"  You  are  too  good  to  me,  my  dear  children 
and  grandchildren,"  she  said,  glad  tears  spring 
ing  to  her  eyes.  "  I  am  quite  sensible  that  I  am 


76  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

by  no  means  the  beautiful  and  admirable  person 
your  affectionate  appreciation  leads  you  to  im 
agine." 

"  O  mamma,"  exclaimed  Zoe,  "  there's  no  im 
agination  about  it  !  Girls,  you  have  shown 
great  taste  in  arraying  her  for  the  occasion  ;  it 
only  needs  the  addition  of  my  floral  crown  to 
make  her  dress  quite  perfect." 

But  carriages  were  driving  up  the  avenue, 
and  near  friends  and  relatives  came  pouring  in 
with  their  congratulations  and  gifts,  which  last 
were  received  with  grateful  thanks  and  bestowed, 
for  the  present,  in  a  small  reception-room  set 
apart  for  the  purpose. 

When  the  last  of  the  guests  had  arrived  all 
repaired  to  the  grounds,  wending  their  way 
toward  the  arbor  where  the  heroine  of  the  day 
was  seated  on  an  extemporized  throne  garlanded 
with  flowers,  while  her  father  made  a  neat  little 
speech  and  placed  the  floral  crown  on  her  head, 
then,  dropping  on  one  knee  at  her  feet,  kissed 
her  hand  and  presented  a  bouquet  of  calla  lilies, 
pinks,  and  roses. 

It  was  altogether  a  surprise  to  her,  and  a 
vivid  blush  mantled  her  cheek. 

"My  dear  father,"  she  said,  low  and  tenderly, 
looking  up  into  his  face,  with  eyes  half  filled 
with  tears,  as  he  rose  and  stood  by  her  side, 
"you  should  never  have  knelt  to  me — your  own 
child." 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  *7 

"Only  in  sport,  dearest,"  he  said,  bending 
down  and  imprinting  a  kiss  upon  her  lips; 
"  you  know  young  lads  like  myself  must  be 
allowed  to  indulge  in  a  trifle  of  that  kind  occa 
sionally." 

He  stepped  aside,  and  amid  much  jesting  and 
mirth,  the  others  followed  his  example  till  the 
throne  and  its  occupant  were  half  hidden  in  the 
fragrant  heaps  of  floral  offerings. 

But  father  and  sons,  coming  to  the  rescue, 
extricated  her  without  damage  to  person  or 
attire,  and  she  went  about  among  her  guests 
doing  the  honors  of  the  place  with  a  sweet  and 
gentle  dignity  all  her  own. 

There  were  no  strangers  among  them,  how 
ever,  and  everybody  felt  at  home  and  free  to 
follow  his  or  her  own  inclinations,  to  sit  and 
converse  in  the  grateful  shade  of  the  fine  old 
trees,  wander  about  lawn,  shrubbery,  and 
gardens,  or  take  part  in  the  active  sports  with 
which  the  children  and  youth  of  the  company 
were  delighting  themselves. 

But  it  was  not  in  the  kind  heart  of  Grand 
ma  Elsie  to  neglect  her  poorer  guests.  Her 
father,  sons,  and  a  few  others  accompanying  her, 
she  paid  a  short  visit  to  each  assembly,  went 
about  among  them  with  kindly  inquiries  con 
cerning  their  health  and  welfare  (no  air  of  con 
descension  marring  their  enjoyment  of  her 
Bweet  looks  and  words),  and  distributing  gifts— 


78  ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

from  a  large  basket  carried  by  two  men-ser 
vants — of  such  articles  of  food  and  clothing  as 
she  knew  would  be  acceptable  ;  for,  ever,  like 
her  Master,  going  about  doing  good,  she  was 
a  frequent  visitor  in  their  dwellings  and  well 
acquainted  with  their  needs. 

And  they  looked  upon  her  as  a  kind,  power 
ful  friend,  from  whom  they  might  ever  expect 
with  confidence  sympathy  and  help  in  their 
trials  and  struggles  with  life's  hard  problems. 

The  birthday  feast  at  the  mansion  was  served 
somewhat  later  in  the  day  ;  a  banquet,  not  only 
of  such  things  as  appease  the  hunger  of  the 
physical  man,  but  also  "a  feast  of  reason  and  a 
flow  of  soul." 

The  celebration  of  Grandma  Elsie's  semi 
centennial  was  pronounced  by  every  one  so 
fortunate  as  to  have  a  share  in  it  to  have  been 
from  beginning  to  end  a  most  decided  success. 


CHAPTER  VI 

MAX  and  Lulu  were  on  the  veranda  at 
Woodburn, — its  only  occupants.  The  westem 
sky  was  all  aglow  with  the  gorgeous  hues  of  a 
brilliant  sunset ;  rich  masses  of  purple,  gold, 
amber,  pale-green,  and  delicate  rose  color  were 
piled  from  the  horizon  half  way  up  to  the  zenith, 
while  flecks,  patches,  and  long  streaks  of  flame, 
changing  every  moment — here  spreading  and 
deepening,  there  contracting  and  fading  to 
paler  tints — stretched  above  and  beyond  on 
every  side. 

It  was  a  grand  scene,  and  Max,  who  was 
whittling  a  bit  of  soft  wood,  paused  for  several 
minutes  to  gaze  upon  it  with  admiration  and 
delight. 

"  What  a  splendid  sunset !  "  he  exclaimed, 
turning  toward  his  sister. 

But  she  was  absorbed  in  a  story-book,  holding 
it  in  a  way  to  catch  the  last  beams  of  the  fading 
light,  and  reading  on  with  eager  haste,  utterly 
oblivious  to  the  glories  of  the  sunset  sky,  and 
the  beauties  of  the  grounds  arrayed  in  all  the 
verdure  of  June. 

79 


80  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  Lu,  you're  straining  your  eyes,  reading  by 
this  fading  light,"  said  Max.  "  If  papa  were 
here  he  would  certainly  tell  you  to  stop  at 
once." 

Lulu  made  no  reply,  but  continued  to  read  aa 
if  she  had  not  heard  the  remark. 

Max  waited  a  moment,  then  began  again, 
«  Lu— " 

"  Oh,  Max,  do  be  quiet  !"  she  exclaimed  impa* 
tiently,  without  moving  her  eyes  from  the  page. 

Max  gazed  at  her  for  another  minute  without 
speaking,  an  odd  sort  of  smile  in  his  eyes  and 
playing  about  the  corners  of  his  mouth. 

"  Yes,  I'll  do  it,"  he  muttered  under  his 
breath  ;  "  now's  as  good  a  time  as  any  for  the 
experiment." 

At  that  instant  their  father's  voice  was  heard 
in  grave,  slightly  reproving  accents,  coming  ap 
parently  from  the  hall.  "  Lulu  !  " 

"  Sir,"  she  answered  promptly,  dropping  her 
book,  while  a  vivid  color  suffused  her  cheek. 

"  Don't  read  any  longer  ;  you  will  injure  your 
eyes.  Lay  aside  your  book  and  come  here 
to  me." 

t  She  obeyed  at  once,  hurrying  into  the  hall, 
Max  looking  after  her  with  a  gleam  of  mingled 
fun  and  triumph  in  his  eyes. 

"  Why,  papa,  where  are  you  ?  "  he  heard  her 
ask  the  next  moment ;  then  she  came  rushing 
back  with  a  face  full  of  astonishment  and  per 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  81 

plexity.  "  Max,  where  can  papa  be  ?  didn't  you 
hear  him  call  me  ?  I  was  sure  he  was  in  the 
hall,  but  he  isn't  ;  and  I  can't  find  him  in  any 
of  .the  rooms.  And  oh,  now  I  remember  he 
drove  away  with  Mamma  Vi  not  half  an  hour 
ago,  and  they  were  going  to  the  Oaks,  and  he 
couldn't  possibly  be  back  by  this  time,  even  if 
they  didn't  stop  there  long  enough  to  get  out  of 
the  carriage.  Besides,  we  would  have  seen  it 
drive  up  from  the  gate." 

"  Couldn't  they  have  come  back  through  the 
wood,  as  you  and  I  do  sometimes  ?  " 

"  Yes,  so  they  could  ;  but  even  then  we  should 
have  seen  and  heard  them,  and — no,  they  can't 
have  come  back.  Papa  can't  be  at  home  ;  and 
yet  I  heard  him  call  me  as  plainly  as  ever  I  did 
in  my  life.  Oh  ! — "  and  she  dropped  into  a 
chair  with  a  look  of  dread  and  alarm  that  half 
frightened  her  brother. 

"  Max,"  she  went  on  in  low,  half -tremulous 
tones,  "I — I — do  believe  it  means  that  I'm 
going  to  die." 

"  Why,  Lu  !  "  he  exclaimed,  "  I  should  never 
have  thought  you  could  be  so  silly  !  What  on 
earth  can  have  put  that  notion  into  your  head  ?" 

"  I've  heard  stories  of  people  hearing  them 
selves  called  in  that  mysterious  way  and  dying 
very  soon  afterward,"  she  answered,  looking 
rather  ashamed. 

"  Well,  that's  all  nonsense,"  he  returned  with 


€2  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

an  air  of  superior  wisdom.  "  I'm  perfectly  sure 
papa  would  tell  you  so." 

"  Maybe  you  wouldn't  care  if  you  thought  it 
did  mean  that  ?"  she  said,  half -interrogatively. 

"  Oh,  of  course  not ;  you  don't  suppose  I  care 
anything  about  you,  do  you  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  I  know  you  do.  And  if  you  didn't, 
you  know  papa  loves  me,  and  would  be  grieved 
to  lose  me,  and  you  love  him  well  enough  to  be 
eorry  on  his  account." 

"  Well,  maybe  so  ;  though  I  hadn't  thought 
it  out.  But  you're  very  healthy,  and  I've  a  no 
tion  are  going  to  outlive  all  the  rest  of  us." 

"  Dear  me,  how  awful  that  would  be  !  "  she 
cried  ;  "  to  be  left  all  alone,  after  seeing  you  all 
dead  and  buried.  I  believe  I'd  rather  go  first." 

"  But  not  very  soon  ?  " 

"  No,  I — think  I'd  like  to  live  a  little  longer ; 
we  do  have  such  good  times  nowadays — in  our 
own  home  with  papa.  But — Max,  who  could 
nave  called  me  like  that?"  she  queried,  with 
a  look  of  anxious  perplexity.  "  You  heard  it, 
too,  didn't  you  ?  " 

"Yes." 

"  But  why  do  you  laugh,  and  look  so  pleased 
and  amused  ?  I  should  think  you'd  be  troubled 
by  the  mysteriousness  of  it,  same  as  I  am." 

"No,  I'm  not,"  he  answered,  "  because  it  isn't 
really  very  mysterious  to  me.  Lu,  to  save  you 
from  worrying,  I'll  explain." 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  88 

She  looked  at  him  in  wide-eyed  surprise. 

"  Then  you  know  who  it  was  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  it  was  I — myself." 

"  You  ?  why  how — what  do  you  mean,  Max  ?" 

"  That  I've  found  out  that  I'm  a  ventriloquist, 
like  Cousin  Ronald." 

"  Oh,  Maxie  !  is  that  so  ?     Oh,  how  nice  ! " 

"  Yes  ;  I  wondered  if  I  could  do  it,  and  I 
asked  him  to  tell  me  exactly  how  he  did  it,  and 
if  people  could  learn  how  if  they  tried  very  hard. 
He  said  it  depended  upon  practice  and  dexterity  > 
and  explained  and  showed  me  as  nearly  as  he 
could ;  and  I  tried,  and  would  go  off  into  the 
wood  yonder,  when  I  could  get  a  chance  with- 
out  anybody  noticing,  and  practice.  To-night  I 
thought  I'd  try  it  on  you,  and  I'm  just  delighted 
that  I  succeeded  so  well." 

"  Indeed  you  did  !  "  she  exclaimed.  "  I  don't 
believe  Cousin  Ronald  himself  could  have  done 
it  any  better.  Oh,  Max,  I  think  it's  ever  so  nice  ! 
what  fun  we  shall  have  !  Try  it  on  papa  when 
he  comes  home  ;  do  !  He  wouldn't  be  vexed  ; 
papa  enjoys  fun  just  as  much  as  we  do,  and  is 
never  angry,  even  if  the  joke  is  at  his  expense.'* 

"  No,  indeed  !  and  I  never  had  a  boy  friend 
that  was  better  company,  or  even  as  good,  going 
gunning  or  fishing,  or  in  a  game  of  base-ball,  or 
anything  else." 

"  And  I  never  enjoy  our  parlor  games  half  sa 
much  when  he  doesn't  take  part." 


84  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"No  ;  but  he  always  does,  unless  he's  too 
busy  or  has  company  to  entertain.  I  tell  you, 
Lu,  it's  just  splendid  to  have  a  father  you  can 
talk  to  just  as  freely  as  if  he  was  a  boy  like 
yourself — tell  him  all  you  think  and  feel,  and 
see  that  he's  interested,  and  know  that  if  your 
thoughts  and  feelings  aren't  right  he'll  show 
you  it's  so  without  being  angry  or  stern,  or  mak 
ing  you  feel  that  he  considers  you  a  simpleton 
or  a  fool.  I  like  to  be  reasoned  with  as  if  I  had 
some  sense  ;  and  that's  the  way  papa  does  with 
me  ;  and  sometimes  he  asks  my  opinion,  as  if  he 
thought  it  was  worth  something." 

"  Yes,  I  know  he  does  ;  and  mine  too,  and 
I'm  younger  than  you,  and  not  nearly  so  far 
along  in  my  studies.  But,  oh,  Max,  let's  be  think 
ing  of  the  tricks  you  can  play  with  your  ventrilo 
quism.  What  will  you  do  to-night  to  astonish 
papa  and  Mamma  Vi  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know  ;  have  you  any  suggestion  to 
make?" 

She  had  several,  and  was  very  eager  to  see 
one  or  more  of  her  plans  tried.  Max  had  some 
of  his  own  too,  and  they  made  themselves  very 
merry  talking  them  over. 

The  sunset  glow  had  faded  from  the  sky,  but 
the  moon  had  risen  and  was  flooding  the  beauti 
ful  grounds  with  silvery  light.  Suddenly  a 
mocking-bird  in  a  tree  close  at  hand  began 
to  pour  forth  a  perfect  flood  of  melody. 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.  85 

The  children  ceased  talking  to  listen  to  its 
song. 

"Oh,  isn't  that  delicious  music?  "  cried  Lulu, 
as  the  bird  paused  for  a  moment.  "  Max,  you 
couldn't  do  that,  could  you  ?  " 

"No,  indeed,"  laughed  Max.  "I'd  give  a 
great  deal  if  I  could.  But  hark,  he's  beginning 
again." 

"  It  sounds  as  if  he's  praising  God,"  Lulu  re 
marked,  at  the  next  pause  ;  "  he  sings  as  if  his 
little  heart  is  so  full  of  joy  and  thankfulness 
that  he  doesn't  know  how  to  express  it." 

"  Yes,"  said  Gracie's  voice,  close  at  her  side. 
"  I  think  he's  rejoicing  in  the  beautiful  moon- 
light,  Lu  ;  and  isn't  it  lovely  ?  It  makes  a  rain 
bow  in  the  spray  of  the  fountain,  and  I  can  see 
the  dewdrops  glitter  in  the  grass.  And  look 
at  the  fireflies  dancing  in  and  out  among  the 
trees  and  bushes." 

"  Some  of  them  soaring  away  above  the  tree- 
tops,"  put  in  Max. 

"  And  maybe  birdie  is  rejoicing  in  the  sweet 
scent  of  the  roses  and  honeysuckle,  the  mignon 
ette,  the  moon-flowers,  and  others  too  numerous 
to  mention,"  said  Lulu.  "  But  where  have  you 
been  all  this  time,  Gracie  ?  " 

"With  Elsie  and  baby  Ned.  Mamma  put 
them  to  bed  as  usual  before  she  and  papa  went, 
but  she  couldn't  stay  till  Elsie  went  to  sleep, 
and  I  offered  to  stay  beside  Elsie  and  sing  to 


86  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

her  and  tell  her  stones,  and  mamma  said  I  might, 
and  she  would  be  very  much  obliged  to  me 
for  it." 

"  That  was  good  in  you,  Gracie,"  Lulu  said, 
pulling  Grace  down  into  her  lap,  and  putting  her 
arm  round  her ;  "  I  suppose  it  was  my  place  to 
do  it,  really,  as  I'm  the  oldest,  but  I  n^ver 
thought  of  it.  But  you  are  always  such  a  dear, 
kind,  unselfish  girl." 

"  And  so  you  are,"  said  Max  and  Grace,  speak 
ing  together,  Max  adding,  "  Who  was  it  was  so 
brave  the  night  the  burglars  got  into  the  strong 
room,  and  so  unselfish  as  to  prefer  to  risk  her 
own  life,  locking  them  in  there,  rather  than 
have  papa  risk  his  ?  " 

"  Lulu,  of  course,"  said  a  voice  that  sounded 
like  Evelyn  Leland's,  speaking  near  at  hand,  on 
the  other  side  of  the  little  girls,  "  for  who  else 
would  have  done  it  ?  " 

Even  Lulu  was  startled  enough  to  turn  her 
head,  half -expecting  to  see  her  friend  standing 
there,  while  Grace  sprang  up  and  turned  in  the 
direction  of  the  sound,  exclaiming,  "  Why,  Eva, 
when  did  you  come  ?  I  didn't  know  you  were 
here  !  Oh,  she  isn't  there  !  How  quickly  she 
got  away — into  the  hall,  I  suppose,"  running  to 
ward  the  door.  "  Eva,  Eva,"  she  called,  "  where 
can  you  have  gone  to  so  fast  ?  " 

Max  and  Lulu  looked  after  her  with  a  low, 
gleeful  laugh. 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.  87 

"  Another  succesp  for  you,  Max,"  Lulu  Baid. 

"  Oh,  I  hope  Gracie  wont  be  frightened  !  "  he 
exclaimed,  in  sudden  fear  of  the  effect  of  hii 
experiment  upon  his  timid,  nervous  little  sister, 
and  just  then  Grace  came  hurrying  back,  look- 
ing  a  little  alarmed  and  very  much  perplexed. 

"  Why,"  she  said,  "  where  could  Eva  have 
gone  to  ?  I've  looked  all  about  and  can't  find 
her." 

"  Shall  I  tell  her,  Max  ?  "  asked  Lulu. 

"Yes,"  he  answered,  and  Lulu  went  on.  "  Max 
has  learned  to  be  a  kind  of  Cousin  Ronald, 
Gracie,  and  we  shall  have  lots  of  fun  because  of 
it,  don't  you  think  so  ?  " 

"  A  ventriloquist,  do  you  mean  ? "  asked 
Grace  in  astonishment.  "  Why,  how  can  he  ?  " 

"  Because  he  is  so  smart,  I  suppose,"  laughed 
Lulu.  "Aren't  you  proud  of  being  the  sister  of 
euch  a  genius  ?  I  am." 

"  Yes,"  returned  Grace  promptly.  "  I  always 
was  proud  of  Maxie.  But  this  astonishes  me 
very  much  indeed.  Oh,  I'm  ever  so  glad  of  it  I 
I'm  sure  he  can  make  a  great  deal  of  fun  for  him 
self  and  us.  Does  papa  know  ?  " 

"  No,"  said  Max,  "  and  you  mustn't  tell  him. 
When  he  comes  home  we'll  see  if  we  can't  have 
some  fun  out  of  him.  He'll  enjoy  it  as  much 
as  we  will." 

"  Of  course  ;  and  be  as  proud  of  you,  Maxie, 
as  Lu  and  I  ape." 


88  ELSIE  AND   TEE  RAYMONDS. 

Just  then  they  saw  the  carriage,  bringing 
their  parents,  turn  in  at  the  great  gates  leading 
from  the  highway  into  the  Woodburn  grounds, 
and  come  rapidly  up  the  drive. 

It  drew  up  before  the  entrance,  and  the  cap 
tain  alighted  and  handed  out  his  wife. 

The  children,  always  delighted  to  see  them 
return  after  even  the  shortest  absence,  sprang 
up  and  ran  forward  with  eager,  joyous  greet 
ings. 

"  I  hope  you  have  not  been  lonely,  dears  ?  " 
said  Violet,  bending  down  to  receive  and  re 
turn  an  ardent  kiss  from  Grace.  "  But  I  must 
hurry  up  to  the  nursery  to  see  how  the  babies 
are  doing." 

"  Papa,  sit  down  in  this  easy-chair,  please," 
said  Lulu. 

"And  let  me  take  your  hat  and  hang  it  on  the 
rack,"  added  Max. 

"And  may  I  get  you  a  glass  of  ice-water  ?  " 

"  And  I  a  fan  ?  "  asked  Lulu  and  Grace. 

"  Thank  you,  my  darlings,  I  do  not  feel  the 
need  of  either,"  he  answered,  seating  himself 
and  drawing  Grace  to  his  knee,  Lulu  to  his  side, 
and  putting  an  arm  affectionately  around  each. 

Max  drew  up  a  chair  close  to  his  father's  side. 
"  Had  you  a  pleasant  time,  papa  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  Very  ;  we  happened  upon  quite  a  number 
of  the  relatives — Dr.  Conly  and  his  brother 
Calhoun,  from  Roselands,  the  Fairview  family, 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  89 

Grandpa  and  Grandma  Dinsmore,  and  Grand 
ma  Elsie.  Some  of  them  were  spending  the 
day,  while  others,  like  ourselves,  had  just  dropped 
in  for  a  call." 

At  the  sound  of  the  carriage-wheels  on  the 
driveway,  Prince,  Max's  big  Newfoundland  dog, 
had  come  rushing  round  from  the  back  of  the 
house  with  a  joyous  welcoming  bark.  He  was 
devotedly  attached  to  every  member  of  the 
family,  to  no  one  of  them  more  than  to  the  cap 
tain.  He  had  followed  Max  into  the  hall  and 
out  again,  and  stood  close  beside  him  now,  evi 
dently  considering  himself  entitled  to  make  one 
of  the  little  group;  pushing  himself  a  little 
farther  in  among  them,  he  laid  his  head  on 
Grace's  lap,  wagging  his  tail  in  pleased  expec 
tancy,  and  looking  up  wistfully  into  the  cap 
tain's  face. 

"  Good  Prince  !  good  dog  !  "  the  captain  said 
kindly,  stroking  and  patting  the  dog's  head. 
"How  are  you  to-night,  old  fellow  ?  " 

"  Wide  awake,  and  glad  to  see  you  home, 
sir,"  were  the  words  that  seemed  to  come  from 
Prince's  own  mouth  in  reply. 

"  What  !  "  exclaimed  the  captain,  hastily  put 
ting  Grace  off  his  knee  to  rise  and  turn  round 
toward  the  open  hall  door,  "  Cousin  Ronald 
here  ?  Children,  why  didn't  you  tell  me  he  had 
come  ?  " 

He  was  moving  quickly  in  the  direction  of  the 


»0  ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

doorway  as  he  spoke,  the  children  exchanging 
amused  glances  and  finding  some  difficulty  in 
suppressing  an  inclination  to  laugh  aloud. 

The  captain  glanced  within  the  hall,  saw  no 
one,  though  it  was  brilliantly  lighted,  then 
turning  toward  the  little  group,  "  Max,"  he 
asked,  "  where  is  Mr.  Lilburn  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know,  papa  ;  not  here;  at  least,  I 
have  not  seen  or  heard  anything  of  him." 

"  Strange  !  "  said  his  father,  with  a  look  of 
perplexity.  "  Ah,  I  see  you  are  all  laughing. 
Come,  if  you  can  explain  Prince's  sudden  power 
of  speech,  do  so  at  once." 

Captain  Raymond's  tones  were  perfectly  pleas 
ant  ;  evidently  he  was  not  at  all  angry  at  the 
liberty  taken  with  him. 

He  sat  down  again,  and  they  crowded  round 
him,  Max  answering,  "  Yes,  sir  " ;  the  little  girls, 
"  Max  can  tell  you,  papa,"  generously  resigning 
to  him  the  pleasure  of  revealing  the  secret. 

The  captain  began  to  have  an  inkling  of  the 
truth.  "Out  with  it,  Max,"  he  said,  pretending 
to  be  very  stern;  "so  you've  been  playing  tricks 
on  your  father,  have  you  ?  I  never  expected 
such  disrespectful  treatment  from  you." 

Max  had  dropped  his  eyes  and  did  not  see  the 
twinkle  of  fun  in  his  father's. 

Coloring  deeply,  "  Papa,"  he  said  in  a  r«. 
morseful  tone,  "  I — I  wouldn't  for  anything 
have  been  disrespectful  to  you  ;  I  didn't  mean 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  91 

it ;  there's  nobody  else  I  so  sincerely  respect  as 
I  do  you.  Please  forgive  me,  and — " 

"My  boy,  don't  you  see  that  I  am  only  in 
jest  ?  "  the  captain  asked,  taking  his  hand  and 
holding  it  in  a  kindly  pressure.  "  But  come," 
he  added  sportively,  "  make  a  clear  breast  of  it 
now,  and  let  me  judge  whether  you  have  sinned 
beyond  forgiveness." 

Max  answered  with  a  full  confession  and  ex 
planation,  making  them  as  brief  as  possible ; 
and  his  sisters  gave  a  mirthful  account  of  the 
exhibitions  of  his  power  that  he  had  given  them. 

"  Well,  my  son,"  the  captain  said,  "  this  newly 
discovered  talent  may  be  made  a  source  of  in 
nocent  amusement  to  yourself  and  others,  but  I 
trust  you  will  never  use  it  to  injure  or  annoy — 
unless  the  victim  of  a  slight  annoyance  is  to 
be  more  than  recompensed  for  it  by  the  after 
results,"  he  added  in  a  playful  tone,  laying  his 
hand  affectionately  on  the  boy's  head. 

Max  heaved  a  sigh  of  relief.  "  I'll  try  not  to, 
papa,"  he  said,  with  an  arch  look  and  smile  up 
into  his  father's  face,"  and  you'll  forgive  me  for 
tricking  you,  wont  you  ?  " 

"Yes;  taking  into  consideration  the  extenuat 
ing  circumstance  of  its  being  the  first  offense." 

"  Thank  you,  sir.  But  I  hope  you  don't  forbid 
me  to  try  it  on  MammaVi,  one  of  these  times  ?  " 
retuned  Max  insinuatingly,  and  with  another 
arch  look  and  smile. 


92  ELSIE  AND  THE  RA  TMONDB. 

"  No,  I  shall  not,  as  I  incline  to  the  opinion 
that  she  would  rather  enjoy  it,"  laughed  his 
father. 

"  Oh,  Max,  when  will  you  do  it  ?  "  cried  Lulu. 
"  Gracie  and  I  will  want  to  be  there  to  see  and 
hear  it  all,  for  you  know  it's  only  once  you  can 
play  the  trick  on  any  one  person  ;  at  least  if  you 
tiy  it  again  they're  very  apt  to  think  immedi 
ately  that  it's  you  doing  it." 

"  I'll  take  some  time  when  you'  two  girls  are 
by,"  said  Max;  "papa  also.  But  perhaps," 
with  an  inquiring  glance  at  his  father,  "I'd 
better  not  try  any  more  of  it  to-night." 

"  No  ;  it  is  time  now  for  prayers,"  the  captain 
answered.  "We  will  go  in,  and,  Max,  you  may 
ring  for  the  servants." 

They  all  repaired  to  the  library,  where  Violet 
and  the  'servants  presently  came  also,  and  the 
short  service  was  held. 

At  its  conclusion,  as  the  children  were  bid 
ding  good-night,  Violet  noticed  a  large  doll 
sitting  in  state  in  its  own  tiny  chair.  She 
picked  it  up,  saying,  "  Ah,  Elsie  has  forgotten 
her  favorite  Fatima,  and  will  probably  be  crying 
out  for  her  before  morning." 

Max's  eyes  twinkled,  and  he  sent  a  question 
ing,  wishful  glance  in  his  father's  direction. 

The  captain  smiled,  and  gave  a  nod  of  acqui 
escence. 

"  Where's  my  little  mamma  ?  "  asked  a  tiny 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  93 

voice,  that  seemed  to  issue  from  Fatima's  lips. 
"  Please  take  me  to  my  little  mamma." 

Violet  started  and  opened  her  eyes  wide  in 
astonishment,  then  glancing  quickly  around  the 
room,  "  Cousin  Ronald  !  "  she  exclaimed.  "  But 
where  is  he  ?" 

No  answer  but  a  half -suppressed  giggle  from 
the  little  girls,  and  an  exchange  of  amused 
glances  between  them,  their  father,  and  Max. 

"  Captain,  is  Cousin  Ronald  here  ?  have  you 
seen  him?  What  does  it  all  mean?"  Violet 
asked,  piling  one  question  upon  another. 

"  No,  my  dear,  but  it  seems  he  has  left  a 
representative  behind  him,"  returned  her  hus 
band  pleasantly,  laying  a  hand  on  Max's  shoul 
der,  and  giving  him  a  little  playful  shake. 

"Max  !  "  she  cried  in  fresh  astonishment  ;  "is 
it  possible  that  you  can  imitate  his  powers  as  a 
ventriloquist  so  well,  Maxie  ?  " 

Max  modestly  repeated  the  explanation 
already  made  to  his  father  and  sisters;  they  gave 
a  laughing  account  of  his  exploits  witnessed  by 
them,  then  the  captain  bade  Lulu  and  Grace  say 
good-night  and  seek  their  nests. 

"  But  you,  Max,  my  son,"  he  added,  "  may 
Btay  a  little  longer.  I  have  something  to  say  to 
you." 


CHAPTER  VH. 

THE  captain  opened  his  secretary,  took  a  let 
ter  from  one  of  its  pigeon-holes,  glanced  over 
the  contents,  restored  the  missive  to  its  place, 
then  turned  to  Max,  who  stood  patiently  wait 
ing  by  his  side. 

"We  will  go  out  on  to  the  veranda  and  have 
our  talk  there,  my  boy,"  he  said,  leading  the 
way,  Max  following,  "  the  air  is  so  much  pleas- 
anter  there  than  within  doors  this  warm  even- 
ing." 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  perfectly  delightful,  I  think,  papa; 
I  don't  know  where  a  lovelier,  happier  home 
than  ours  can  be  found." 

"  Ah,  I  am  very  glad  you  appreciate  it,  my 
dear  boy,"  the  captain  said,  with  a  pleasant 
look,  beginning  to  pace  the  length  of  the 
veranda  to  and  fro,  Max  keeping  close  at  his 
side,  "  and  I  shall  miss  my  eldest  hope  sadly 
when  the  time  comes  for  him  to  leave  the 
home  nest.  Have  you  made  up  your  mind  yet 
as  to  what  calling  you  would  like  best  to 
pursue  ?  " 

"  I  have  been  thinking  a  great  deal  about  it 
of  late,  papa,  and  if  you  are  willing,  and  there 
94 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  95. 

is  an  opening  for  me,  I  want  to  go  into  the- 
navy." 

"  I  willing  ?  Entirely  so.  I  have  not  lost  my 
old  love  for  the  service,  and  shall  not  grudge  my 
son  to  it." 

"  Perhaps  I  inherit  my  love  for  it  from  your 
papa,"  remarked  Max.  "  Any  way,  I  know  that 
your  having  been  in  it,  and  hearing  you  speak 
so  highly  of  it,  has  had  a  good  deal  to  do  with 
my  desire  to  go  into  it ;  and  y9ur  son  could 
hardly  fail  to  be  patriotic  and  full  of  love  to  the 
old  flag.  Then  you  have  furnished  me  with  so 
much  interesting  reading  about  the  doings  of 
our  navy  in  the  Revolutionary  War,  the  War 
of  1812,  and  the  Civil  War,  that  it's  no  wonder 
I  feel  a  strong  desire  to  help  in  its  work  if  we- 
ever  have  another  one." 

"  No,  I  suppose  I  have  only  myself  to  blame,'* 
his  father  said  pleasantly,  "  yet  I  am  not  at  all 
•ure  that  I  should  act  otherwise  if  I  could  go 
back  to  the  time  of  your  babyhood  and  begin 
over  again. 

"  Well,  Max,  to-day's  mail  brought  me  the 
offer  of  an  appointment  to  a  naval  cadetship 
for  my  son,  if  I  desired  it.  My  boy,  shall  I 
accept  for  you  ?  " 

"  If  you  think  best,  papa,  I'll  be  delighted  ta 
have  you  do  it,"  Max  said,  in  a  joyous  tone, 
'* But  am  I  old  enough  to  go  this  year?  " 

"  Just  the  right  age,"    answered  his  father, 


96  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

half-sighing  at  the  thought  of  the  separation 
the  acceptance  of  the  offered  appointment  must 
involve.  "  But,  Max,  I  fear  I  may  have  shown 
you  the  pleasant  side  of  the  life  too  exclusively. 
I  must  discourse  to  you  of  its  hardships,  before 
allowing  you  to  decide  for  or  against  it." 

"  I  hope,  papa,  you  don't  think  me  such  a 
milksop  or  coward  that  I'd  be  frightened  at  the 
thought  of  a  little  hardship  ?  "  Max  said,  with 
heightened  color.  "  I'm  sure  I  ought  to  be 
willing  to  stand  as  much  of  such  things  as  my 
father  did." 

"  No,  my  boy,  I  should  not  be  the  proud  and 
happy  father  I  am  if  I  were  compelled  to  enter 
tain  so  mean  an  opinion  of  you,"  returned  the 
captain,  looking  down  at  the  boy  with  a  smile 
of  fatherly  pride  and  affection.  "  Perhaps  love 
blinds  me  to  the  faults  of  my  first-born,  but  to 
me  he  seems  a  son  that  any  man  might  be  proud 
to  call  his  own  ;  and  if  ever  tempted  to  an  un 
worthy  act,  let  the  remembrance  that  it  would 
go  nigh  to  break  your  father's  heart  to  hear  of 
it  restrain  you  from  yielding  to  the  temptation." 

He  paused  in  his  walk  and  laid  a  hand  af 
fectionately  on  the  lad's  shoulder. 

"  Papa,"  returned  Max  with  emotion,  "  I 
think  no  punishment  could  be  too  bad  for  a  boy 
that  could  grieve  such  a  father  as  mine.  I — I 
think  I'd  rather  die  than  know  I  had  hurt  you  so!'* 

"  I  believe  it,  my  son,"  responded  the  cap 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  97 

tain  with  feeling  ;  "  I  have  not  the  least  doubt 
that  you  have  a  very  strong  affection  for  me, 
and  would  be  very  loath  to  cause  me  pain.  I 
hope,  too,  that  you  are  quite  as  anxious  to  please 
and  honor  your  heavenly  Father  ;  much  more 
so,  indeed. 

"  But  let  us  sit  down  here  while  I  tell  you  of 
the  hardening  process  a  naval  cadet  must  pass 
through,  and  the  trials  of  his  after-life  as  an 
officer  in  the  service  if  he  be  so  fortunate  as  to 
secure  a  permanent  place  in  it." 

"  Yes,  sir,  I'll  be  glad  to  hear  anything  you 
can  tell  me  about  both.  I  suppose  I'm  not  quite 
sure  of  getting  into  the  acaderoy,  even  if  I  do 
accept  this  offer,  am  I  ?  " 

"  No,  not  quite  ;  there  is  zi  examination  to 
pass  through,  as  to  both  your  physical  and  edu 
cational  qualifications.  To  be  accepted,  a  boy 
must  be  physically  sound  and  of  robust  consti 
tution  ;  both  of  which  you  are,  so  far  as  I  can 
judge  ;  you  have  never  been  seriously  ill  m 
your  life. 

"  Beside,  the  applicant  must  have  a  sufficient 
knowledge  of  reading,  writing,  spelling,  geog- 
r?phy,  English  grammar,  United  States  history, 
arithmetic,  and  algebra.  You  are  well  grounded 
in  all  these,  and  must  review  during  your  sum 
mer  vacation,  under  the  tutor  who  has  had 
charge  of  you  for  some  time  past,*  he  added 
with  playful  look  and  tone. 


08  ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  Papa,"  Max  said,  a  little  tremulously,  "  shall 
I  ever  have  such  another  ?  so  kind,  so  patient, 
and  always  so  ready  to  take  any  amount  of 
trouble  to  explain  things  and  make  them  clear 
to  me  ?  " 

"  It  is  not  at  all  impossible  that  you  may  find 
one  or  more  who  will  be  all  that,  my  boy,"  the 
captain  responded,  "  but  certainly  none  that  can 
have  the  same  affection  for  you,the  same  fatherly 
joy  and  pride  in  seeing  your  progress  ;  it  would 
not  be  natural  for  any  other  than  your  own 
parent." 

"No,  sir  ;  I  know  that  ;  and  of  course  I 
couldn't  feel  the  same  toward  any  other 
teacher." 

"  I  shouldn't  want  you  to,  Max,"  laughed  the 
captain  ;  "  I  must  acknowledge  that  I  couldn't 
be  quite  willing  to  have  my  son  loving  any 
other  man  with  the  same  filial  affection  that  he 
gives  me. 

"  But  to  return  to  the  subject  in  hand  :  you 
will  have  to  resign  many  of  the  luxuries  you  en 
joy  at  home.  You  will  not  be  allowed  a  room 
to  yourself  ;  you  must  share  it  with  another 
cadet,  and  with  him  take  week  about  in  keep 
ing  it  in  the  most  perfect  order  ;  sweeping, 
dusting,  and  arranging  its  contents  every  morn 
ing  for  inspection  ;  every  article  will  have  a 
•place,  and  must  be  found  there  when  not  in  use. 

"Your  furniture  will  be  severely  plain  ;  an 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.  99 

iron  bedstead,  a  wooden  chair,  a  washstand, 
looking-glass,  wardrobe,  rug,  and  a  table  which 
you  will  share  with  your  room-mate.  You  can 
have  no  curtains  to  your  windows,  no  maps  or 
pictures  to  adorn  your  walls." 

"  I  shouldn't  expect  the  government  to  pro 
vide  such  things,"  remarked  Max,  "but  can't 
I  take  some  from  home  ?  " 

"  No  ;  it  is  not  allowed." 

"  That  seems  odd,  papa.  What  harm  could  it 
do  for  a  boy  to  have  such  things,  if  his  father 
could  afford  to  provide  them?" 

"  It  is  because  some  of  the  lads  may  come 
from  veiy  poor  families,  and  the  government 
chooses — very  wisely,  I  think — that  all  shall 
fare  alike  while  students  in  that  national 
college." 

"  Yes,  to  be  sure,"  returned  Max  thoughtfully  ; 
"  I  think  that's  just  as  it  ought  to  be  ;  and  it 
will  be  a  trifling  hardship  to  have  to  do  without 
such  things  while  I'm  there." 

"  The  discipline  is  very  strict,"  the  captain 
went  on,  "but  my  boy  has  learned  to  obey  one 
naval  officer,  and  perhaps  will  in  consequence 
find  it  at  least  comparatively  easy  to  obey 
others." 

"Yes,  sir;  I  hope  so." 

"  Your  academic  standing,  number  of  de 
merits,  and  so  forth,  will  be  reported  to  me 
once  a  month,  and  will  gratify  or  distress  me 


100        ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

according  to  what  they  are.  I  am  sure  the 
thought  of  that  will  be  a  restraint  upon  any 
inclination  my  boy  may  have  to  idleness  or 
breaches  of  discipline." 

"I  ought  to  be  called  an  ungrateful  wretch  if 
it  doesn't,  papa.  How  long  is  the  course  ?  " 

"  If  appointed,  you  will  have  to  take  "Jin  oath 
to  serve  for  eight  years,  including  the  proba 
tionary  period.  After  graduating  two  years  are 
spent  at  sea,  then  there  is  another  examination, 
and  if  passed  successfully  and  there  is  a  vacancy 
to  be  filled,  there  will  be  an  appointment  to  the 
line,  and  to  the  marine  or  the  engineer  corps  of 
the  navy." 

"  But  if  there  is  no  vacancy,  papa  ?  " 

"  The  candidate  is,  in  that  case,  given  an  hon 
orable  discharge,  a  certificate  of  graduation,  and 
one  year's  pay." 

"I  hope  I'll  get  through  all  right  and  that 
there'll  be  a  vacancy  ready  for  me  to  fill,"  said 
Max. 

"  I  hope  so,  my  son,  if  that  is  your  desire  ; 
but  don't  forget  that  there  are  hardships  in  a 
seafaring  life  that  do  not  fall  to  the  lot  of  lands 
men  :  many  and  long  separations  from  their 
families,  exposure  to  danger  from  disasters  at 
sea  or  on  foreign  shores,  and  others  too  numerous 
to  mention  at  present.  Yet  it  is  a  life  that  has 
many  and  great  attractions  for  me.  But  those 
I  have  often  told  you  of." 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.         101 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  and  all  you  have  told  me  to-night 
does  not  frighten  me  out  of  my  wish  ;  life  is 
very  easy  here  at  home,  and  perhaps  it  may  be 
good  for  me  to  go  through  some  rougher  expe 
riences.  Don't  you  think  so,  papa  ?  " 

"  Yes,  I  rather  agree  with  you  in  that  ;  a  life 
of  luxury  and  ease  is  not  the  best  for  the  devel 
opment  of  a  strong,  manly,  self-reliant  char 
acter." 

"  Then  you  Avill  write  and  accept  for  me,  will 
you,  sir  ?  " 

"  Yes." 

"  How  soon  do  I  go  to  the  academy,  papa  ?  '* 

"  In  September  ;  and  I  have  a  plan  for  you  in 
the  mean  time,  with'  which  you  will  be  pleased,  I 
think. 

' '  I  find  I  must  pay  a  visit  to  some  property 
that  I  own  in  the  far  West,  and  I  want  my  son's 
companionship  on  the  trip,  supposing  he  fancies 
taking  it  with  me." 

TLie  captain  looked  smilingly  into  the  lad's 
eyes  as  he  spoke. 

"  Oh,  papa,  how  delightful  ! "  cried  Max. 
"  Will  you  really  take  me  with  you  ?  " 

"  Su'ch  is  certainly  my  intention,  if  nothing 
happens  to  prevent,"  the  captain  replied,  smiling 
to  see  how  pleased  the  boy  was  with  the  pros 
pect. 

"  Mamma  Vi  can  hardly  be  going  along  on 
such  a  trip,  I  suppose  ? "  Max  said  inquiringly. 


102          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  Oh  no  !  we  could  not  take  the  babies  along, 
and  she  would  not  be  willing  to  leave  them." 

"  Then  are  you  and  I  to  be  the  whole  party, 
•ir?" 

"  I  have  some  thought  of  inviting  Lulu  to  go 
with  us,"  replied  his  father.  "  Do  you  think 
she  would  like  it,  and  that  we  two  could  take 
proper  care  of  her  ?  " 

Max  laughed.  "  I  shouldn't  be  a  bit  afraid  to 
trust  anybody  to  your  care,  sir,"  he  said,  "  and 
I'd  do  anything  I  could  to  help.  Beside,  I  don't 
believe  Lu's  the  sort  of  girl  to  give  much  trouble 
on  such  a  journey,  and  I'm  sure  she'll  be  fairly 
wild  with  delight  when  you  tell  her  about  it, 
and  that  she  is  to  go  along." 

"I  am  of  the  same  opinion,  and  enjoying  the 
prospect  of  witnessing  her  pleasure  on  hearing 
the  news. 

"  Well,  my  son,  our  talk  has  been  a  long  one, 
and  it  is  late  ;  time  for  a  growing  boy,  such  as 
you,  to  be  in  bed.  Bid  me  good-night  and  go." 

They  both  hath  risen  to  their  feet.  Captain 
Raymond  held  out  his  hand  as  he  spoke.  Max 
promptly  put  his  into  it,  saying  with  a  bright, 
happy,  affectionate  look  up  into  his  father's 
face,  "  Thank  you  very  much,  papa,  for  all  your 
kind  plans  for  me.  Is  Lu  to  hear  about  the 
journey  to-night  ?  " 

"I  think  not,"  was  the  reply;  "she  is  so  ex 
citable  that  I  fear  such  surprising  news  might 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          103 

keep  her  awake.  I  dare  say,  though,  she  is  al 
ready  in  bed  and  asleep." 

To  make  sure  of  that,  he  went  softly  into  her 
room  on  his  way  to  his  own.  He  rarely  failed 
to  look  in  upon  his  little  girls  after  they  had 
gone  to  their  rooms  for  the  night,  and  when  he 
did  fail  it  was  a  sore  disappointment  to  them. 

Lulu  was  in  bed  and  had  fallen  into  a  doze, 
but  woke  at  his  approach,  albeit  he  moved  with 
a  very  quiet  step,  and  started  up  to  a  sitting 
posture. 

"  Papa,"  she  exclaimed  in  an  undertone, 
mindful  not  to  rouse  Grace  from  her  slumbers  in 
the  adjoining  room,  "  oh,  I'm  so  glad  you  came! " 
throwing  her  arms  round  his  neck  as  he  reached 
the  bedside  and  bent  down  to  give  her  a  kiss. 
"  You  must  have  talked  a  long  time  to  Maxie. 
I  was  really  growing  jealous,"  she  added,  with 
a  laugh. 

"  Were  you  ?  "  he  asked,  seating  himself  on 
the  edge  of  the  bed  and  drawing  her  into  his 
arms.  "  Isn't  Maxie  entitled  to  a  fair  share  of 
papa's  attentions,  as  well  as  of  his  love  ?  " 

"Oh,  yes,  indeed  !  and  I  wouldn't  want  to 
rob  him  of  a  bit  of  either  ;  but  I  do  so  love  the 
little  bedtime  chat  with  you  that  I'd  rather  misi 
'most  anything  else." 

"  Well,  dear  child,  perhaps  we  can  have  an  un 
usually  long  talk  in  the  morning  to  comfort  you 
for  the  loss  to-night.  So  go  to  sleep  as  fast  as 


104          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

you  can,  that  you  may  be  ready  for  an  early 
waking,"  he  said.  Then  with  another  kiss  and 
fervent,  "  Good-night,  my  darling,  and  may  He 
who  neither  slumbers  nor  sleeps  have  you  in  his 
kind  care  and  keeping,"  he  left  her. 


CHAPTER  VTIL 

LULU'S  first  waking  thought  was  of  her  f  ath« 
er's  promise. 

"  Perhaps  he  is  going  to  tell  me  what  he  and 
Maxie  were  talking  about  last  night,"  she  said 
to  herself.  "  Likely  it  was  something  of  impor 
tance  to  keep  them  so  long.  I  wonder  what  ? 
Maybe  about  going  to  the  seashore,  or  some 
where,  for  the  hot  months,  as  we  always  do." 

She  slipped  out  of  bed  and  began  a  brisk 
toilet,  determined  to  be  ready  to  receive  her 
father  whenever  he  might  come. 

She  and  Gracie  were  together  in  their  own 
little  sitting-room  looking  over  their  tasks  for 
the  day,  when  hearing  his  approaching  footstepi 
they  hastily  laid  aside  their  books  and  ran  to 
meet  him. 

"  Good-morning,  my  darlings  ;  you  look  well 
and  bright,"  he  said,  bending  down  and  opening 
his  arms  to  receive  them. 

"  Good-moraing,  dear  papa,"  they  answered, 
running  into  them,  and  putting  theirs  about  his 
neck.  "Yes,  we  are  well,  and  hope  you  are 
too,"  hugging  and  kissing  him  with  ardent 
affection. 

105 


106          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  Now,  papa,  wont  you  give  me  that  long 
talk  you  said  I  should  have  this  morning  ? " 
pleaded  Lulu. 

"Yes;  don't  I  always  keep  my  promises?" 
he  asked,  taking  possession  of  an  easy-chair  and 
allowing  them  to  seat  themselves  one  upon  each 
knee. 

'•Yes,  indeed  you  do,  papa;  sometimes  when  I'd 
rather  you  wouldn't,"  returned  Lulu  laughingly. 

"  Would  you  be  willing  to  lose  faith  in  your 
father's  word,  dear  child  ?  "  he  asked,  with  sud 
den  gravity. 

"No,  papa  ;  no  indeed  !  "  she  answered  earn 
estly  ;  "  that  would  be  worse  than  being  pun 
ished,  when  I  deserve  it,  for  naughtiness  that 
you've  said  you'd  have  to  punish  me  for." 

"  I  trust  there  will  never  again  be  any  call  for 
me  to  keep  such  promises,"  he  said  caressing 
her.  "You  have  been  very  good  for  some  time 
past,  and  intend  to  keep  on  trying  to  be  so,  do 
you  not  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  but  I'm  afraid  the  badness  that  I 
still  feel  inside  sometimes  will  crop  out  again 
one  of  these  days,"  she  said,  half -sadly,  half- 
jestingly. 

"The  same  danger  threatens  your  father, 
too,"  he  said,  "  and  the  only  safety  for  either 
of  us  lies  in  constant  watching  and  prayer." 

"  But,  papa,  how  can  we  be  praying  all  the 
time  ?  " 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.  10* 

«  The  Bible,"  e  replied,  "  bids  us  '  Pray  with- 
out  ceasing,'  not  meaning  that  we  are  to  live 
on  our  knees,  or  with  words  of  prayer  always 
on  our  lips,  for  that  would  be  ^impossible  with 
out  neglecting  other  duties  enjoined  in  God's 
Word — such,  for  example,  as  '  Six  days  shalt  thou 
labor  and  do  all  thy  work,'  '  Distributing  to  the. 
necessity  of  saints,'  and  so  forth — but  that  we 
are  to  live  near  to  God  and  with  so  much  of  the 
spirit  of  prayer  in  our  hearts  that  they  will  be 
often  sending  up  swift,  silent  petitions,  or  song» 
of  praise  and  thankfulness. 

"  Well,  Lulu,  I  know  you  are  curious  to  hear 
what  Max  and  I  were  conversing  about  last 
night." 

''  Oh,  yes,  sir,  indeed  !  if  you  are  willing  I 
should  know,"  she  responded  eagerly. 

"  Quite  willing,"  he  said.  "  It  was  of  his  choice 
of  a  business  or  profession.  I  had  received  a 
letter  offering  an  appointment  for  my  son  as  a 
naval  cadet  ;  so,  as  I  wish  Max  to  choose  for 
himself,  it  was  necessary  for  him  to  decide,  and 
to  do  so  promptly,  whether  he  would  accept  that 
offer  or  decline  it." 

"Oh  !  which  did  he  choose  to  do,  papa  ?" 

"  He  said  he  had  quite  made  up  his  mind  to 
go  into  the  navy,  if  he  might,  and  asked  me  to 
write  an  acceptance  for  him  ;  which  I  did  be 
fore  I  went  to  my  bed." 

"  You  are  always  so  prompt,  papa,'*  remarked! 


108          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

Lulu,  putting  her  arm  round  his  neck  and  gaz 
ing  with  loving  admiration  into  his  face. 

"  Yes,"  he  said,  "  I  must  try  to  be  all  I  would 
have  my  children,  for  *  example  is  better  than 
precept. ' " 

"  And  Maxie  will  have  to  go  away  and  not  be 
in  school  with  us  any  more  ?  "  Grace  said,  half 
inquiringly,  tears  filling  her  eyes. 

"Yes,  daughter,"  her  father  answered  with  a 
slight  sigh;  "  boys  can't  be  always  kept  at  home; 
but  I  hope  to  keep  my  girls  a  long  while  yet," 
he  added,  drawing  them  into  a  close  embrace  as 
he  spoke. 

"  Dear,  dear  !  how  we  will  miss  Max  !  "  ex 
claimed  Lulu,  "  but  then  how  nice  it  will  be 
when  he  comes  home  for  his  vacations  ! " 

"  So  it  will,"  said  the  captain.  "  But  now  I 
have  something  else  to  tell  you  ;  something 
which  concerns  you,  Lulu,  a  little  more  nearly." 

"I  hope  it  isn't  that  I  am  to  go  away  too  ! 
you  can't  make  a  cadet  of  me,  though  Aunt 
Beulah  called  me  a  torn-boy  when  I  was  with 
her,"  Lulu  remarked  laughingly. 

"  No  ;  but  there  are  other  places  more  suita 
ble  for  girls,"  her  father  replied,  with  a  grave 
look  and  tone  that  she  was  at  a  loss  to  inter 
pret. 

"  Oh,  papa,  you  can't  mean  that  really  I — I'm 
going  away  too  ?  " 

"Perhaps  some  better  instructor  than  your 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYtiOXDS.          109 

present  one  might  be  found  for  you,"  he  began 
meditatively,  then  paused,  as  if  considering 
the  matter. 

"Oh,  no,  no,  no  !  "  she  cried,  "there  couldn't 
be  a  better  one,  I'm  sure,  and  I  just  love  to  be 
taught  by  you,  and  couldn't  bear  to  have  any 
body  else  teach  me  ;  'specially  if  I  had  to  go 
away  from  you.  And  wouldn't  you  miss  me  a 
little,  papa  ?  "  she  asked,  with  tears  in  her  voice 
and  hiding  her  face  on  his  shoulder. 

"  Yes  ;  a  great  deal  more  than  a  little  should 
I  miss  the  darling  daughter  always  so  ready, 
even  eager,  to  run  papa's  errands  and  wait  upon 
him  lovingly,"  he  said,  pressing  his  lips  again 
and  again  to  her  cheek.  "  In  fact,  her  com 
panionship  is  so  sweet  to  me  that,  having  to  go 
upon  a  long  journey,  I  would  prefer  to  take  her 
with  me. 

"  But  I  shall  not  force  her  inclination  ;  if  you 
would  rather  stay  at  home  with  Mamma  Vi  and 
the  little  ones,  you  may  do  so." 

"Oh,  papa,  what  do  you  mean  ?"  she  asked, 
looking  up  in  joyful  surprise,  not  unmixed  with 
perplexity.  "  Wont  you  please  explain  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  I  am  going  out  to  the  far  West  on  a 
business  trip,  shall  take  Max  with  me,  and  you, 
too,  if  you  care  to  go." 

"  Care  to  go  !  wouldn't  I !  "  she  cried,  clapping 
her  hands  in  delight,  and  half  smothering  him 
with  caresses.  "  Oh,  I  think  I  never  dreamed 


«10          ELSIE  AND  TEE  RAYMONDS. 

of  anything  so,  so,  so  delightful !  Papa,  you  are 
euch  a  dear,  dear  father !  so,  so  good  and  kind 
to  me  !  Oh,  I  ought  to  be  the  best  girl  that  ever 
was  made  !  and  if  I'm  not  it  shan't  be  for  want 
of  trying." 

"  But  tears  were  rolling  down  Grade's  cheeks, 
and  with  a  little  sob  she  drew  out  her  handker 
chief  to  wipe  them  away. 

"  O  Gracie,  dear,  I  wish  you  could  go  too  !  " 
exclaimed  Lulu. 

"  If  she  were  only  strong  enough,"  her  father 
said,  caressing  her  with  great  tenderness,  "  she 
too  should  have  her  choice  of  going  or  staying  ; 
but  I  know  the  fatigue  of  the  journey  would  be 
more  than  she  could  endure." 

"  I  don't  want  to  have  a  journey,"  sobbed 
Grace ;  "  but  how  can  I  do  without  papa  ?  without 
Maxie  ?  and  without  Lulu  ?  all  gone  at  once  ?  " 

"  But  mamma  and  the  babies  will  be  left,  and 
you  love  them  dearly,  I  know." 

"  Yes,  papa,  but  I  love  Max  and  Lu,  and  oh, 
I  love  you  better  than  anybody  else,  in  all  the 
•world  !  "  clinging  about  his  neck  and  laying 
her  little  wet  cheek  to  his. 

"  Sweet  words  for  papa  to  hear  from  your 
lips,  darling,"  he  returned,  holding  her  close  and 
kissing  her  many  times,  "  and  papa's  love  for 
you  is  more  than  tongue  can  tell." 

"  Then  why  will  you  go  away  and  leave  me, 
papa  ?  " 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          Ill 

"  Because  business  makes  it  necessary  for  me 
to  go,  darling,  and  you  are  not  strong  enough 
to  go  with  me.  But  cheer  up  ;  it  will  be  very 
pleasant  at  home  with  mamma  and  the  babies  ; 
Grandma  Elsie  and  the  others  coming  over  from 
Ion  and  Fairview  very  often  ;  and  after  a  while 
you  will  all  be  going  to  some  nice  seaside  resort, 
where  I  hope  to  join  you  with  Max  and  Lulu 
before  it  is  time  to  come  home  again." 

"  That  will  be  nice,  papa,"  she  said  a  little 
more  cheerfully. 

"And  how  would  you  like  to  get  a  letter  from 
papa  now  and  then  ?  from  Max  and  Lulu  too  ? 
and  to  answer  them  ?  You  can  write  very  nicely 
now,  and  a  talk  on  paper  to  your  father  will  be 
better  than  none  at  all,  wont  it  ?  " 

"Oh,  I'd  enjoy  it  ever  so  much,  if  you'll  ex 
cuse  the  mistakes,  papa  !  "  she  exclaimed  with 
animation. 

"  Indeed,  I  will,"  he  said  ;  and  just  then  the 
breakfast-bell  rang. 

Violet's  face  as  she  met  them  in  the  break 
fast-room  was  not  quite  so  sunny  as  husband 
and  children  were  accustomed  to  see  it.  She 
•was  feeling  very  much  as  Gracie  did  about  the 
captain's  contemplated  absence  from  home  ;  also 
it -was  a  sad  thought  to  her  that  Max  was  not 
likely  ever  to  be  again  a  permanent  resident  of 
his  father's  house  ;  he  would  be  at  home  now 
and  then  for  a  vacation,  but  that  probably  would 


112          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

be  all,  for  after  graduating  he  would  go  out  into 
the  world  to  make  a  career  for  himself ;  and  it 
seemed  hard  to  give  him  up,  for  she  was  fond 
of  the  lad — her  husband's  son,  and  like  a  dear 
younger  brother  to  her.  She  noted  the  traces 
of  tears  on  Oracle's  cheeks  with  a  fellow-feeling 
for  the  child's  distress. 

"So  papa  has  been  telling  you,  dear?"  she 
said,  bending  down  to  kiss  the  little  girl. 
"Well,  we  wont  fret;  we'll  try  to  just  keep 
thinking  of  the  joyful  time  we  shall  have  when 
they  come  back  to  us." 

"  Oh,  that  will  be  nice,  wont  it  ?  "  exclaimed 
Lulu.  "  I'm  just  wild  with  delight  at  the  pros 
pect  of  going,  but  I  know  I'll  be  ever  so  glad 
to  get  back  ;  for  this  is  such  a  dear,  sweet 
home." 

"  And  papa  will  be  in  it  again  when  you  get 
back  ;  you'll  have  him  all  the  time  going  and 
coming.  I'm  glad  for  you,  Lu,"  Grace  said, 
smiling  affectionately  on  her  sister,  through  her 
tears. 

But  they  had  taken  their  places  at  the  table, 
and  all  were  quiet  for  a  moment  while  the  cap 
tain  craved  a  blessing  on  their  food. 

Lulu  asked  a  question  the  instant  she  was  free 
to  do  so.  "  Papa,  when  will  we  start  on  ou* 
journey  ?  " 

"  In  about  a  week.  Can  you  get  ready  in  that 
time?" 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          113 

"  Oh,  yes,  indeed,  sir  !  I  don't  believe  I  have 
anything  to  do  but  pack  my  trunk.  I  have 
plenty  of  nice  clothes  and  pretty  things  ready 
to  wear  ! " 

"  Yes,  plenty  of  them,  such  as  they  are  ;  but 
you  will  need  something  plainer  and  more  dur 
able  than  the  dresses  you  wear  at  home." 

"  Shall  I,  papa  ?  "  she  asked,  in  surprise  and 
dismay.  "  Surely,  papa,  you  wont  want  me  to 
look  shabby,  and  I've  heard  that  people  dress 
quite  as  handsomely  and  fashionably  away  out 
West  as  they  do  here  or  anywhere  else." 

"  That  may  be  so,  daughter,"  he  said,  "  but 
sensible  people  dress  according  to  circumstances'; 
suitably  for  time,  place,  and  occupation  ;  for 
instance,  a  sensible  lady  wouldn't  put  on  a  ball 
dress  in  the  morning  and  when  about  to  engage 
in  domestic  duties,  any  more  than  she  would 
wear  a  calico  wrapper  to  a  ball." 

"  Nor  I  wouldn't  think  of  doing  either  of  those 
things,  papa,"  she  returned  laughing.  "But 
you  don't  expect  to  set  me  to  doing  housework 
•ut  there,  do  you  ?  " 

"Perhaps  we  are  to  live  in  a  tent  and  have 
you  for  our  housekeeper,  Lu,"  suggested  Max. 

"  Oh,  is  that  it  ?  "  she  exclaimed,  with  a  look 
of  delight.  "  Oh,  that  would  be  fun  !  Papa, 
are  we  to  do  so  ?  " 

"I  have  no  such  scheme  in  contemplation,'' 
lie  said,  smiling  kindly  into  her  excited  face, 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

u  I  rather  think  we  will  find  a  place  to  board, 
and  that  it  will  not  be  one  where  you  will  find 
occasion  for  much  fine  dressing.  Beside  I  shall 
not  care  to  take  any  one  tricked  out  in  laces  and 
ribbons  with  me  to  climb  mountains,  roam 
through  forests,  or  go  down  into  mines,  or  to 
ride  an  Indian  or  Mexican  pony,  or  a  mule,  over 
rough  roads,  and  that  not  always  in  fine 
weather." 

"  O  papa,  are  you  going  to  let  me  do  such 
things  as  that  !  "  she  cried,  laying  down  knife 
and  fork  to  clap  her  hands  in  glee,  and  feeling  a 
strong  inclination  to  jump  up  and  dance  about 
the  floor. 

"  Some,  or  possibly  all  of  them,  if  I  can  have 
you  in  suitable  attire,"  he  answered  ;  "  but  cer 
tainly  not  otherwise." 

"  What  additions  to  her  wardrobe  do  you 
wish  made,  my  dear  ?  "  asked  Violet. 

"  Two  or  three  dresses  of  some  material  not 
easily  torn  or  soiled  ;  flannel  perhaps  ;  and  they 
must  be  plainly  and  strongly  made,  no  flounces, 
furbelows,  or  trimming  of  a  kind  that  would  be 
liable  to  catch  on  twigs  or  bushes  or  points  of 
rock." 

"  I  shall  look  like  a  fright,  I'm  afraid,"  re 
marked  Lulu  uneasily,  and  coloring  deeply  ; 
"but  I'm  willing  to  for  the  sake  of  pleasing 
you,  papa,  and  being  taken  everywhere  with 
you." 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          115 

"  That's  right,  dear  child,"  he  said,  giving  her 
»  smile  of  approval. 

"  And  I  think  you  will  look  very  nice  and 
neat,  Lu,"  said  Violet.  "  My  dear,  mamma  and 
I  are  going  into  the  city  this  morning  for  a  lit 
tle  shopping,  and  if  you  can  trust  our  taste  and 
judgment  we  will  willingly  purchase  the  gooda 
for  Lulu's  dresses.  Then  I  will  set  Alma  to 
work  upon  them  at  once,  and  try  to  get  Susan 
Allen  to  help  her  ;  for  I  think  it  will  take  both 
to  finish  them  in  season." 

"  An  excellent  plan,  my  dear,"  the  captain  re 
plied,  "  and  I  shall  be  exceedingly  obliged  if  yov 
will  undertake  it,  for  I  should  sooner  trust  your 
and  mother's  taste  and  judgment  in  such  thing* 
than  my  own."  , 

"  Can't  I  go  along  and  help  choose  my  own 
dresses,  papa  ?  "  pleaded  Lulu. 

**  If  it  didn't  involve  neglect  of  lessons,  you 
might,  daughter,"  the  captain  answered  in  a 
very  kind  tone,  "  but  as  that  is  the  case,  we 
must  leave  the  selection  to  your  mamma  and 
Grandma  Elsie." 

A  slight  cloud  gathered  on  Lulu's  brow,  but 
it  cleared  again,  when 'Max  said,  "  You  know, 
Lu,  our  school  days  together  are  almost  over, 
and  you  don't  want  to  miss  any  of  them  ;  at 
least  I  don't,  for  I  shall  never  have  another 
teacher  so  good  at  explaining,  so  kind  and  so 
fond  of  his  pupils,  as  papa." 


116          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

The  lad's  voice  trembled  a  little  with  the  con- 
eluding  words,  in  spite  of  himself. 

"I'm  sure  you  wont,  Max,  and  I'm  sony  for 
you,"  returned  Lulu,  with  a  slight  sigh;  "  for 
myself  too,  that  I'm  not  to  have  your  company 
in  the  school-room  after  this  week." 

"  Please  don't  talk  about  it,"  begged  Grace, 
hastily  wiping  away  a  tear.  "I'll  just  have  to 
try  not  to  think  of  it,  or  I'll  be  crying  all  the 
time." 

"  Which  would  not  be  at  all  good  for  your 
eyes,"  added  her  father,  "  so  you  would  better 
take  your  mamma's  advice  and  turn  your 
thoughts  upon  pleasant  subjects.  I  have  some 
thing  to  suggest ;  make  out  a  list  of  all  the  toys, 
books,  and  other  presents  you  would  like  to 
have  (supposing  some  fairy  should  come  and 
offer  to  supply  them),"  he  interpolated  with 
playful  look  and  tone,  "the  places  you  would 
like  to  visit,  and  all  the  agreeable  ways  of 
spending  your  time  this  summer  that  you  can 
manage  to  contrive;  and  when  your  list  is  done 
let  me  see  it." 

Grace  knew  her  father  well  enough  to  feel 
quite  certain  that  the  making  out  of  such  a  list 
at  his  suggestion  would  not  be  labor  lost. 

"  I  will,  papa,"  she  said,  smiling  through  her 
tears  ;  "  I  think  I'll  begin  this  afternoon,  soon  as 
my  lessons  are  learned." 

Lulu  found  no  small  difficulty  in   fixing  her 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          117 

attention  upon  her  tasks  that  morning  ;  her 
thoughts  would  fly  off,  now  to  the  Naval  Acad 
emy,  where  her  brother  was  likely  to  be  domi 
ciled  in  the  fall,  now  to  the  far  West,  with  the 
fresh  pleasures  there  awaiting  her  father,  Mar, 
and  herself. 

Glancing  toward  her  the  captain  saw  that, 
though  a  book  lay  open  on  the  desk  before  her, 
her  eyes  were  fixed  on  vacancy.  He  called  her 
to  come  to  him.  She  started,  coloring  deeply, 
rose,  and  obeyed. 

"  You  are  not  studying,"  he  said,  in  a  grave, 
though  not  unkindly,  tone." 

"  No,  sir ;  I  meant  to,  but — O  papa,  I  just 
can't  study  when  I  have  so  much  else  to  think 
about." 

'Can't  is  a  lazy  word,  my  daughter,"  he 
replied.  "  You  have  a  strong  will — which  is 
not  altogether  a  bad  thing,  though  it  has  given 
both  you  and  me  a  good  deal  of  pain  and  trouble 
in  past  days.  I  want  you  to  exert  it  now 
and  force  your  truant  thoughts  to  fix  themselves 
upon  the  business  in  hand.  Will  you  not  ? 
because  it  is  your  duty,  and  to  please  your  father 
who  loves  you  so  dearly  ?  " 

"  Indeed,  I  will,  papa  ;  and  perhaps  I  shall 
succeed  if  I  try  with  all  my  might,"  she  an 
swered,  holding  up  her  face  for  a  kiss,  which  ho 
gave  very  heartily. 

Returning  to  her  seat,  she  set  to  work  with 


118          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

•uch  earnestness  and  determination  that  when 
summoned  to  recite  she  was  able  to  do  so  to  the 
entire  satisfaction  of  both  her  father  and  herself. 

Max  and  Grace  did  equally  well,  and  tutor 
and  scholars  withdrew  from  the  school-room  in 
a  happy  frame  of  mind. 

A  carriage  was  coming  up  the  drive,  bringing 
Grandma  Elsie  and  Mrs.  Raymond  on  their 
return  from  the  proposed  shopping  expedition, 
and  at  once  Lulu  was  all  excitement  to  see  what 
they  had  bought  for  her. 

"  May  I  see  my  dresses,  Mamma  Vi  ? "  she 
asked,  following  Violet  and  her  mother  through 
the  hall  and  up  the  wide  stairway. 

"  Yes,  Lu,  certainly,"  replied  Violet,  "  though 
I'm  afraid  you  will  not  think  them  very  pretty 
to  look  at,"  she  added,  with  a  deprecatory  smile. 
"  You  know  I  could  only  try  to  carry  out  your 
father's  wishes  and  directions." 

"  And  that  I  am  sure  is  just  what  a  little  girl 
who  loves  her  father  so  dearly,  and  has  such 
confidence  in  his  judgment,  would  wish  to  have 
done,"  Grandma  Elsie  remarked,  in  a  pleasant 
tone.  "  I  think  the  goods  we  have  selected  will 
make  up  into  very  neat  dresses,  entirely  suitable 
for  the  occasions  on  which  you  expect  to  wear 
them,  Lulu,  my  dear  child." 

"  Yes,  Grandma  Elsie,  and  I  mean  to  be  satis 
fied,  even  if  they  don't  look  pretty  to  me,  be 
cause  I  know  that  you  and  papa  and  Mamma 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          110 

Vi  are  much  wiser  than  I,  and  if  papa  is  satis, 
fied  with  my  appearance,  I  suppose  it  really 
doesn't  make  any  difference  what  other  folks 
think,"  returned  Lulu,  seating  herself  on  a  sofa 
in  her  mamma's  boudoir  and  undoing  the  pack 
age  handed  her  by  a  servant. 

"  Three  flannel  dresses — a  dark  brown,  a  dark 
blue,  and  a  dark  green ;  all  beautiful  shadeg 
and  nice,  fine  material,"  she  commented.  "  I 
like  them  better  than  I  expected  to,  but — " 

"  Well,  dear  ?  "  inquired  Violet,  as  the  littla 
girl  paused  without  finishing  her  sentence. 

"  They  are  very  pretty  shades,"  repeated 
Lulu,  "  but  I  think  red — a  dark  shade,"  most 
black  in  some  lights — would  be  more  becoming 
to  my  complexion.  Don't  you,  papa  ? "  look 
ing  up  into  his  face  as  he  came  and  stood  by 
her  side. 

"  Possibly,"  he  answered,  sitting  down  and 
drawing  her  to  his  knee,  "  but  there  might  be 
times  when  it  would  prove  dangerous.  Som« 
animals  have  a  great  hatred  to  that  color,  and 
with  a  red  dress  on  you  might  be  chased  by  a 
turkey  gobbler  or  some  large  animal,"  he  con 
cluded  laughingly,  hugging  her  up  in  his  arms 
and  kissing  her  first  on  one  cheek,  then  on  the 
other. 

"  Oh,  yes  !  I  didn't  think  of  that  1 "  ah* 
exclaimed  with  a  merry  laugh. 

"  Beside,"  he  continued  in  the  same  sportiv* 


120          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

tone,  "  so  thoroughly  patriotic  a  young  Ameri 
can  as  my  Lulu  surely  does  not  want  to  be  a 
redcoat  ?  " 

"  No,  papa,  no,  indeed  !  that  would  never  do 
for  a  blue-jacket's  daughter,  would  it  ?  Blue's 
the  right  color,  after  all,  and  I'm  glad  that  it 
was  the  color  chosen  for  one  of  the  dresses." 

"  And  now  the  next  thing  is  to  go  up  to  the 
sewing-room  and  have  them  cut  and  fitted," 
said  Violet.  "  Alma  is  there,  and  will  attend  to 
it  at  once." 

"  And  we're  going  to  have  Mrs.  Allen  and 
Susan  here  to  help  too,  aren't  we  ? "  queried 
Lulu,  leaving  her  father's  knee  and  gathering 
up  the  new  purchases. 

"  There  will  be  some  parts  they  can  work  on. 
at  home,"  said  Violet. 

"  You  and  I  will  drive  over  with  some  work 
for  them  this  afternoon,  Lulu,"  said  the  captain  ; 
"and  call  at  Fairview  and  Ion  on  our  way 
home,  so  that  you  can  have  the  pleasure  of  tell 
ing  your  little  friends,  Evelyn  and  Rosie,  about 
the  trip  you  are  expecting  to  take.  Here,  give 
me  that  bundle  ;  it  is  a  trifle  heavy  for  you  to 
carry,  and  I'll  go  with  you  to  the  sewing-room.'* 

"  Oh,  you're  just  the  goodest  papa  !  "  she 
returned  merrily,  readily  yielding  up  the  pack 
age,  putting  her  hand  into  his,  and  dancing  along 
by  his  side  as  he  led  her  to  the  sewing-room  ; 
"you're  always  contriving  something  to  give  me 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.         121 

pleasure.  It'll  be  fun  to  tell  the  girls,  and  I'm 
in  ever  such  a  hurry  to  have  a  chance." 

"  Yes,  ray  daughter  Lulu  is  very  apt  to  be  in 
a  hurry,"  he  said,  smiling  down  indulgently 
upon  her, "  and  it  is  well  not  to  dilly  dally  when 
there  is  anything  to  be  done,  yet  sometimes 
wisest  to  make  haste  slowly." 

"Papa,  don't  tell  Alma  or  Susan  that,  please," 
she  whispered,  in  a  merry  aside — for  they  were 
nearing  the  open  door  of  the  sewing-room — • 
"because  I  want  them  to  make  haste  fast  this 
time." 

"  No,  only  that  they  must  be  deliberate 
enough  to  make  sm*e  of  doing  the  work  right ; 
for  otherwise  it  would  but  be  the  '  more  haste 
the  less  speed.' ': 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  I  remember  that  old  saw,  and  how 
I've  sometimes  found  it  true." 

In  the  neat  living-room  of  their  cottage  home 
Mrs.  Allen  and  Susan  sat  that  bright  Juno 
afternoon,  the  mother  busily  plying  her  needle, 
the  daughter  running  a  sewing-machine. 

The  little  garden  was  gay  with  flowers  and 
the  vines  over  the  >>orch  were  in  full  bloom  ; 
the  drowsy  hum  of  the  bees  came  pleasantly  in 
at  the  open  door  and  window,  accompanied  by 
the  sweet  scents  of  the  flowers,  and  now  and 
then  from  an  adjacent  field  or  wood  the  cheery 
bird  call,  "  Bob  White  !  Bob  White  !  " 

"  How    delightful     it     is    here,"    remarked 


122         ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

Busan,  stopping  her  machine  for  a  moment  to 
readjust  her  work  ;  "the  air  is  so  sweet ;  the 
Bounds  are  too.  I  like  to  hear  that  bird  calling 
out  so  cheerily." 

"Yes,"  rejoined  her  mother,  "it  is  a  very 
agreeable  change  from  the  old  sounds  of  scold 
ing,  quarrelling,  screaming,  and  crying  that  used 
to  assail  our  ears  in  our  former  abode." 

"  In  Rose  Alley  ?  Yes,  I  was  just  thinking  of 
that,  and  how  hot  and  stifling  the  air  must  be 
there  to-day.  O  mother,  I  do  believe  I  should 
have  been  left  alone  in  the  world  before  now  if 
we  had  had  to  stay  on  there  !  When  I  think 
of  that  I  feel  that  I  owe  a  debt  of  gratitude  to 
Mrs.  Travilla  and  Captain  Raymond  that  I  can 
never,  never  pay." 

"  To  them  and  to  Him  who  put  it  into  their 
hearts  to  do  such  great  kindness  and  gave  them 
the  ability,"  responded  her  mother.  "I  feel 
like  another  woman — find  it  a  pleasure  to  busy 
myself  with  this  beautiful  napery.  See,  I  am 
at  the  last  dozen  napkins,  and  will  be  ready  to 
begin  on  those  linen  sheets  presently.  Yes. 
this  is  easy  and  pleasant  employment  yet  1 
•hould  prefer  something  that  would  keep  me 
out  of  doors  most  of  the  day.  Dr.  Conly  says 
it  would  be  the  best  thing  for  my  health,  and  I 
have  a  plan  in  my  head  that  perhaps  I  may  be 
able  to  carry  out  if  onr  kind  friends  approve, 
and  will  give  me  a  little  assistance  at  the  start.1 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          128 

"What  is  that,  mother?"  asked  Susan  ;  then 
glancing  from  the  door,  "  Oh,  there  is  the 
Woodburn  carnage  ! " 

She  sprang  up  and  ran  down  the  path  to  open 
the  gate  for  its  occupants  and  bid  them  wel 
come. 

They  were  Grandma  Elsie,  the  captain,  and 
Lulu.  They  greeted  her  with  a  pleasant, 
"Good-afternoon,"  and  kindly  inquiries  about 
her  mother  ;  then  Lulu,  handing  out  a  bundle, 
said,  "  I've  brought  you  some  more  work,  Susan  ; 
parts  of  dresses  for  me.  Alma  says  they  are  all 
cut  and  basted,  so  that  you  wont  need  any 
directions  about  them  ;  and  Mamma  Yi  says  you 
may  please  lay  aside  other  work  and  do  this  ai 
promptly  as  you  can." 

"  Yes,  Miss  Lulu  ;  but  wont  you  all  'light  and 
come  in  ?  A  bit  of  chat  with  you  and  the  cap 
tain  always  does  mother  so  much  good,  Mrs. 
Travilla." 

They  had  not  intended  doing  so,  but  that 
plea  was  powerful  to  Grandma  Elsie's  kind 
heart. 

"  Yes,  I  can  spare  a  few  minutes,"  she  said,  in 
reply  to  the  captain's  inquiring  look. 

He  at  once  alighted,  assisted  her  to  do  so,  and 
then  Lulu. 

They  made  only  a  short  call,  yet  it  was  long 
enough  for  Grandma  Elsie's  sympathetic  listen 
ing  and  questioning  to  draw  from  Mrs.  Allen 


124          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS, 

the  secret  of  her  desire  for  outdoor  employment 
of  a  kind  not  too  laborious  for  her  slender 
strength,  and  her  idea  that  she  might  find  it  in 
bee-raising,  had  she  the  means  to  buy  a  hive,  a 
swarm  of  the  insects,  and  a  book  of  instruc 
tions. 

"  You  shall  have  them  all,"  Grandma  Elsie 
said,  "  everything  that  is  necessary  to  enable 
you  to  give  the  business  a  fair  trial." 

"  Many  thanks,  dear  Mrs.  Travilla,"  returned 
the  poor  woman,  tears  of  gratitude  springing  to 
her  eyes ;  "  and  if  you  will  kindly  consider 
whatever  you  may  advance  me  as  a  loan,  I  accept 
your  kind  offer  most  gladly." 

"  It  shall  be  as  you  wish,"  Mrs.Travilla  re 
plied,  "but  with  the  distinct  understanding  that 
the  loan  is  not  to  be  repaid  till  you  can  do  it 
with  perfect  ease." 

"And  I  should  be  glad  to  have  a  share  in  the 
good  work,"  remarked  the  captain.  "  Let  it  be 
my  part  to  gather  information  on  bee  culture 
for  you,  and  help  in  raising  flowers  for  them  to 
gather  honey  from.  Doubtless  they  fly  long 
distances  in  search  of  such,  but  it  must  be  an 
advantage  to  have  plenty  near  at  hand." 

"  Ah,  sir,"  returned  Mrs.  Allen,  "  you  too 
are  always  ready  to  do  every  kindness  in  your 
power.  I  hope  God,  our  heavenly  Father,  will 
abundantly  repay  you  both.  I  ahvays  think 
of  you  when  reading  the  words  of  the  psalmist, 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          125 

*  Blessed  is  he  that  considereth  the  poor ' ;  for 
you  give  not  only  money,  but  time  and  thought 
and  sympathy,  considering  their  needs  and  how 
yon  may  best  supply  them." 

"While  this  talk  went  on  in  the  parlor  Lulu 
•was  telling  Susan,  out  in  the  living-room,  what 
the  dresses  were  needed  for,  and  going  into 
ecstasies  of  delight  over  the  prospect  of  her 
journey  to  the  far  West  with  her  father  and 
Max. 

Susan  sympathized  in  her  pleasure,  and  prom 
ised  to  do  her  best  toward  getting  her  dresses 
done  in  season. 

"  To  Fairview,"  was  the  captain's  order  to  the 
coachman,  when  again  they  were  seated  in  the 
carriage. 

It  was  but  a  few  minutes'  drive,  and  on  their 
arrival  Lulu  was  pleased  to  find  Rosie  there  with 
Evelyn,  so  that  she  could  have  the  satisfaction 
of  telling  her  news  to  both  together,  and  enjoy 
ing  their  surprise.  It  was  quite  as  great  as  she 
had  expected. 

"  How  splendid  !  "  cried  Rosie.  "  You  are  a 
fortunate  girl,  Lu.  I  wonder  if  I  couldn't  per 
suade  mamma  and  grandpa  to  get  up  some  such 
expedition  and  take  me  along  !  " 

"  I'm  very  glad  for  you,  Lu,  and  hope  it  will 
be  one  long  pleasure  from  beginning  to  end,** 
Era  said  ;  you  couldn't  have  a  more  delightful 
oare-taker  than  your  father,  and  Max  will  be 


126         ELSIE  AXD  THE  RAYMONDS. 

good  company  too.  But,  oh  dear,  how  I  shall 
miss  you  !  "  she  concluded  with  a  sigh,  putting 
her  arms  round  Lulu  and  holding  her  in  a  close 
embrace. 

"And  I  you,"  said  Lulu.  "  But  when  we  talk 
that  way  at  home  papa  says  we  should  not  think 
about  that,  but  about  the  joy  of  reunion  when 
we  get  home  again." 

"  Well,  Gracie,  what  progress  have  you  made 
with  that  list  ?  Is  it  ready  for  papa's  inspec 
tion  ?  "  the  captain  asked,  as  the  children  clus 
tered  about  him  on  the  veranda  after  tea  that 
evening. 

"  I've  put  down  some  things,  papa,  but  maybe 
I  can  think  up  some  more  before  long,  if  I  may 
have  a  little  more  time,"  she  answered,  with  an 
arch  smile  up  into  his  face. 

"You  can  have  all  the  time  you  want,  dar 
ling,"  he  said,  caressing  her  ;  "  but  suppose  you 
let  me  see  what  you  have  already  set  down." 

At  that  she  drew  a  half -sheet  of  note-paper 
from  her  pocket  and  put  it  into  his  hand. 

He  glanced  over  it  and  a  look  of  amusement 
stole  over  his  face.  "  A  spade,  rake,  and  hoe  ! 
I  thought  you  had  garden  tools,"  he  said. 

"  Yes,  papa,  but  these  are  to  be  big  ones  for 
Sam  Hill  to  make  his  mother's  garden  with. 
He  says  he  always  has  to  borrow  now,  and  the 
neighbors  get  tired  lending  to  him." 

*'  Ah,  very  well,  you  ghall  have  money  to  buy 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.         127 

them  for  him.  But  what  do  you  want  with 
twenty  yards  of  calico  and  a  piece  of  muslin  ?** 

"  Sam  needs  shirts,  and  his  mother  some 
dresses,  papa." 

"  And  the  slates  and  books  are  for  the  younger 
children  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  and  those  other  things  are  for  the 
Jones  children.  You  know  their  father  doesn't 
buy  them  anything  to  wear,  and  sometimes  he 
takes  the  clothes  other  folks  give  them  and  sells 
them  to  buy  liquor." 

"  Yes,  it  is  very  sad,  and  we  must  do  the  best 
we  can  for  them.  But  you  have  not  put  down 
anything  for  my  little  Grace;  is  there  nothing 
she  would  like  to  have?" 

"  I  don't  need  anything  at  all,  papa.  I  have 
BO  many,  many  nice  things  already." 

"  But  I  want  to  give  you  something  to  help  to 
keep  you  from  being  lonely  while  Lulu  is  enjoy 
ing  herself  in  the  far  West.  Ah,  I  see  there  is 
something  !  What  is  it  ?  " 

"  A  canary  bird,  papa,  that  will  sing  beauti 
fully." 

"Dear  child,"  he  said,  holding  her  close, 
'*  you  shall  have  the  finest  that  money  can  buy  ; 
a  pair  of  them ;  and  the  handsomest  cage  we 
can  find.  I  shall  take  you  to  the  city  to-morrow 
and  let  you  choose  them  for  yourself." 

"  Oh,  how  nice,  papa  !  "  she  cried,  clapping 
her  hands  in  delight ;  "  then  they  will  have  a 


128          ELSIE  A2W  THE  RAYMONDS. 

pretty  home  and  be  company  for  each  other.  I 
was  afraid  one  would  be  lonesome  all  by  itself. 
I  was  thinking,  too,  that  I'd  be  ever  so  lonely, 
at  night  especially,  without  Lu  ;  but  mamma 
says  she  will  take  me  in  with  her  while  you  are 
gone." 

"  Very  kind  and  thoughtful  in  mamma,"  wa« 
the  captain's  comment. 

"You'll  take  me  to  buy  them  to-morrow 
afternoon,  will  you,  papa  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  Yes  ;  if  nothing  happens  to  prevent." 

"  And  mayn't  Lu  and  Max  go  along  ?  " 

"  Certainly  ;  if  they  want  to." 

"  Thank  you,  papa  ;  I'll  be  veiy  much  pleased 
to  go,"  Lulu  said ;  Max  adding,  "  I  too.  So 
there'll  be  four  of  us  to  choose  your  two  birds, 
Gracie." 

"  Perhaps  we  may  be  able  to  persuade  your 
mamma  to  go  too,"  the  captain  said,  as  at  that 
moment  Violet  joined  them,  "  and  then  there'll 
be  five  of  us." 

"  Go  where,  my  dear  ?  "  asked  Violet,  seating 
herself  by  his  side. 

He  explained,  and  she  accepted  the  invitation, 
with  the  remark  that  she  did  not  want  to  lose 
his  company  for  a  moment  of  the  week  he  would 
be  with  her  before  starting  on  his  journey  to  tht 
West. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THEY  all  enjoyed  their  trip  to  the  city  the 
next  day,  Grace  perhaps  more  than  any  of  the 
others.  She  was  allowed  to  buy  everything  on 
her  list,  and  some  others  she  thought  of  while 
on  the  way  or  in  the  stores,  selecting  them  her 
self. 

But  the  first  business  attended  to  was  the  pur 
chase  of  the  canaries.  They  succeeded  in  get 
ting  a  beautiful  pair,  fine  singers,  and  a  very 
handsome  cage.  Grace  was  full  of  delight,  and 
her  father  pleased  himself  with  the  hope  that 
the  new  pets  would  save  her  from  the  loneli 
ness  Lulu's  absence  would  otherwise  have  caused 
her. 

They  left  her  all  drowned  in  tears  when  they 
set  out  upon  their  long  journey,  but,  as  Violet  re 
ported  to  the  captain  in  a  letter  written  on  the 
evening  of  that  same  day,  the  canaries  set  up  a 
aong  so  melodious  and  full  of  joy  that  she  pres 
ently  dried  her  eyes  and  hushed  her  sobs  to 
listen. 

Violet  herself  indulged  in  a  few  tears  over 
the  parting,  but  for  the  sake  of  Grace  and  the 
little  ones  soon  forced  herself  to  assume  an  air 
of  cheerfulness. 

129 


130          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

Max  and  Lulu  were  sorry  for  those  left  behind, 
yet  so  delighted  with  their  own  good  fortune 
in  being  permitted  to  accompany  their  father, 
that  they  speedily  recovered  from  the  sadness 
of  leave-taking  and  were  never  in  better  spirits. 

It  was  on  Saturday  morning  they  began  their 
journey  ;  the  Lord's  day  was  spent  in  a  strange 
city,  very  much  as  they  would  have  spent  it  at 
home,  and  on  Monday  they  started  on  again, 
taking  a  through  train  that  would  carry  them 
to  their  destination,  and  on  which  they  spent 
several  days  and  nights,  finding  excellent  ac 
commodations  for  eating  and  sleeping. 

The  captain  watched  over  his  children  with 
tenderest  care — Lulu  especially,  as  being  the 
younger  and  of  the  weaker  sex — and  Max  was 
constantly  on  the  alert  to  wait  upon  both  her 
and  his  father. 

The  journey,  the  longest  the  children  had  ever 
taken,  was  without  accident  ;  there  was  no  de 
tention,  and  the  luxurious  appointments  of  the 
cars  prevented  it  from  being  very  fatiguing. 

They  made  some  pleasant  acquaintances? 
among  them  an  English  gentleman  and  his  son, — 
a  lad  about  Max's  age. 

Mr.  Austin,  a  man  of  wealth  and  refinement, 
was  travelling  for  his  health  and  to  see  the  coun 
try,  and  had  brought  his  son  with  him  as  a  com 
panion  ;  thinking,  too,  as  he  explained  to  Capt. 
Raymond,  after  they  had  arrived  at  terms  of 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          131 

comparative  intimacy,  that  travel  in  a  foreign 
land  would  be  improving  to  the  boy  in  an  edu 
cational  way. 

The  acquaintance  began  with  the  children. 
Albert  had  been  watching  Lulu  admiringly  for 
a  day  or  so,  from  the  opposite  side  of  the  car. 

"  That's  a  pretty  little  girl  over  there,  papa," 
he  at  length  remarked  in  an  undertone.  "I 
fancy  she's  English  too." 

"I  think  you  are  mistaken,"  returned  his 
father.  "  The  gentleman  is  assuredly  an  Amer 
ican,  and  from  his  manner  toward  the  children 
I  fancy  they  are  his  own.  There  is  a  strong  re 
semblance,  also,  between  the  three." 

"  But  she  has  quite  an  English  complexion, 
sir ;  so  rosy." 

"Yes,  but  such  complexions  are  not  so  very 
unusual  among  the  American  women  and  girls." 

"No,  sir,  perhaps  not.  The  boy's  a  nice- 
looking  fellow  and  has  very  gentlemanly  man 
ners.  Don't  you  think  so,  sir  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  they  are  evidently  people  of  educa 
tion  and  refinement.  But  what  is  the  train  stop 
ping  for  ?  "  glancing  from  the  window.  "  Ah, 
I  see  ;  they  are  taking  on  a  fresh  supply  of  fuel 
for  the  engine." 

The  same  question  had  been  just  asked  by 
Lulu  and  answered  by  her  father  in  the  same 
way,  as  he  ro^  and  took  his  hat  from  the  rack 
overhead. 


132          BL8IE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  You  are  going  out,  papa  ? "  Lulu  said  in 
quiringly.  "  Oh,  don't  get  left,  please  !  " 

"  I  certainly  do  not  intend  to,"  he  answered 
with  a  look  of  amusement.  "I  only  want  to 
stretch  my  limbs  for  a  moment,  and  shall  not 
go  any  distance  from  the  train." 

"  Oh,  can't  we  go  too  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  Max  may,  but  you,  I  think,  would  better 
content  yourself  with  moving  about  the  car." 

"  May  I  go  out  on  the  platform  ?  " 

"  No,  decidedly  not,"  he  answered,  in  a  firm 
though  kind  tone,  then  hurried  out,  Max  fol 
lowing. 

Lulu  rose  and  stood  at  the  window,  watching 
for  their  appearance  outside.  They  were  there 
in  a  moment,  right  below  it. 

"  Papa,"  she  called  softly. 

He  looked  up  with  a  smile.  "  Dear  child," 
he  said,  "  move  about  the  car,  it  will  rest  you. 
I  know  you  are  tired  sitting  so  long." 

He  walked  on,  and  she  stepped  out  into  the  aisle 
and  promenaded  it  up  and  down  several  times, 
stopping  occasionally,  now  at  one  window,  now 
at  another,  to  gaze  out  over  the  landscape ;  a 
seemingly  boundless  prairie  on  one  side,  with  a 
great  herd  of  cattle  feeding  in  the  distance  ;  on 
the  other,  woods  and  low-lying  hills  ;  no  sign  of 
human  habitation  or  of  human  occupancy  any- 
where  to  be  seen,  except  the  little  coaling 
station  before  which  the  train  was  standing. 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          133 

The  car  was  nearly  empty  now,  almost  all 
the  passengers,  excepting  a  few  children  and 
those  in  charge  of  them,  having,  like  her  father 
and  Max,  taken  advantage  of  the  halting  of  the 
train  to  get  a  little  outdoor  exercise,  Mr. 
Austin  and  Albert  among  the  rest. 

The  latter,  however,  returned  almost  imme 
diately.  As  he  stepped  in  at  the  car  door  his 
eyes  fell  upon  a  dainty  white  pocket-handker 
chief  lying  on  the  floor.  He  stooped  and  picked 
it  up,  glancing  around  the  car  in  search  of  the 
owner. 

Lulu,  standing  at  the  window  near  by,  with 
her  back  toward  him,  seemed  most  likely  to  be 
the  one,  and  he  approached  her  at  once,  asking 
in  a  polite  tone,  "Is  not  this  your  property, 
Miss  ?  Excuse  the  liberty,  but  I  found  it  lying 
on  the  floor,  and  it  seemed  likely  to  belong  to 
you,"  holding  out  the  article  as  he  spoke. 

Lulu  had  turned  round  at  the  first  sound  of 
his  voice.  "  Thank  you,"  she  said  ;  '•  yes,  it  is 
mine,  for  there  is  my  name  in  the  corner  ;  in 
papa's  own  handwriting." 

"  I'm  glad  to  have  had  the  happiness  of  re 
storing  it  to  you,"  he  said.  "  How  extremely 
warm  it  is  to-day.  Do  you  not  think  so  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  especially  now  that  the  train  is  stand 
ing  still,  but  when  it  is  in  motion  there's  a 
nice  breeze." 

"  There  are  some  things  I  like  vastly  about 


134          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

America,"  he  went  on,  "but  the  climate  does 
not  suit  me  so  well  as  that  of  old  England  ;  it's 
so  hot  and  dry,  you  know ;  at  least,  don't  you 
think  so  ?  " 

She  gave  him  a  slightly  puzzled  look.  "  I — 
I  believe  I've  heard  that  the  weather  in  England 
is  rather  cooler  in  summer,  and  that  it  rains 
very  often  ;  but  I  never  was  there." 

"  Why,  aren't  y©u  a  little  English  girl  ?  " 

"  English  ?  "  she  exclaimed,  opening  her  eyes 
•wide  in  surprise,  "no,  indeed,  I'm  American, 
every  inch  of  me  ! "  with  a  flash  of  joy  in  her 
dark  eyes  and  a  little  exultant  laugh,  as  though 
to  be  able  to  call  him  or  herself  an  American 
were  the  proudest  boast  any  one  could  make. 

"  I  meant  it  as  a  compliment,  most  assuredly," 
he  said,  coloring  with  a  sense  of  mingled  annoy 
ance  and  mortification.  "  I'm  very  proud  of 
being  English." 

"  And  that's  quite  right,"  she  said  ;  "  papa 
gays  each  one  should  love  his  own  native  land 
above  all  others." 

"  Certainly.  But  you  are  of  English  descent 
surely." 

"I  really  don't  know,"  laughed  Lulu.  "I 
know  that  my  parents,  and  grandparents,  and 
great-grandparents  were  all  born  in  America, 
and  I  never  thought  of  asking  about  my  ances 
tors  any  farther  back  than  that." 

"  We  think  a  great  deal  of  family  in  England; 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          135 

it's  a  grand  thing —  a  thing  to  be  proud  of — if 
one  can  boast  of  a  long  line  of  noble  ancestors." 

"  Yes  ;  papa  says  the  knowledge  that  we're 
descended  fi'ora  honest,  upright,  pious  people  is 
something  to  be  very  thankful  for.  He  says  it's 
easier  for  such  folks  to  be  good — I  mean  honest 
and  truthful  and  all  that — than  it  is  for  the 
descendants  of  wicked  people." 

"  Perhaps  so  ;  though  I  never  thought  of  it 
before,"  and  with  a  slight  bow  he  withdrew  to 
his  own  seat,  for  the  passengers  were  flocking 
in  again  as  the  call,  "  All  aboard  !  "  warned 
them  that  the  train  was  about  to  start. 

Captain  Raymond  was  among  the  first,  and 
just  in  time  to  perceive  that  the  English  lad 
had  been  making  acquaintance  with  his  little 
girl.  He  was  not  altogether  pleased.  His 
countenance  was  unusually  grave  as  he  took 
Lulu's  hand  and  led  her  back  to  her  seat.  But 
there  was  too  much  noise  and  confusion  at  the 
moment  for  anything  like  conversation,  and 
he  made  no  remark. 

Lulu  felt  that  he  was  displeased,  and  several 
times  her  eyes  were  lifted  to  his  face  for  an 
instant  with  a  timid,  half -imploring,  half -depre 
cating  glance. 

At  length  as  the  train  began  to  move  more 
quietly,  he  bent  down  and  spoke  close  to  her  ear. 
"  I  do  not  want  a  daughter  of  mine  to  be  too 
forward  in  making  acquaintance  with  strangers, 


136          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

especially  men  and  boys.  I  would  have  her 
always  modest  and  retiring.  But  I  will  not 
blame  you  unheard,  dear  cbild.  Tell  me 
about  it." 

"  I  didn't  make  the  first  advances,  papa,"  she 
said,  putting  her  arm  around  his  neck,  her  lips 
close  to  his  ear.  "Please  don't  think  I  could  be 
so  bold.  'I  had  dropped  my  handkerchief  and 
didn't  know  it  till  the  boy  picked  it  up  and 
handed  it  to  me.  He  behaved  in  a  very  gentle 
manly  way,  and  when  I  had  thanked  him  he 
began  to  talk  about  the  weather,  and  presently 
asked  me  if  I  wasn't  an  English  girl.  Just  think 
of  it,  papa  !  "  she  added,  with  a  gleeful  laugh. 

"  And  what  did  you  say  to  that  ?  "  he  asked, 
with  an  amused  look  ;  "  that  you  were  not,  but 
wished  you  were  ?  " 

"  Oh,  papa,  no,  indeed  !  wish  I  was  English  ? 
or  anything  else  but  American  ?  I'm  sure  you 
know  I  don't." 

"  Yes,"  he  returned,  putting  his  arm  about 
her  waist  and  giving  her  an  affectionate  hug. 
"  I  am  happy  in  the  knowledge  that  all  my  dar 
lings  are  intensely  patriotic." 

"  Because  you've  taught  us  to  be  so — to  love 
our  dear  native  land  and  the  beautiful  old  flag, 
the  emblem  of  our  nation's  glory  ! "  she  re 
sponded,  her  cheeks  flushing  and  her  eyes 
sparkling. 

Max  sitting   directly  in  front  of  them,  had 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          137 

caught  the  last  two  sentences  of  their  col 
loquy. 

"Yes,  papa,"  he  said,  "every  one  of  us  is 
that ;  even  Baby  Ned  laughs  and  crows  and  claps 
his  hands  when  he  looks  up  at  the  flag  waving 
in  the  breeze.  I  noticed  it  at  Ion,  on  Grandma 
Elsie's  semi-centennial,  where  they  had  so  many 
floating  from  the  veranda  and  tree-tops." 

"  Ah ! "  laughed  the  captain,  "  that  was 
doubtless  an  evidence  of  good  taste,  but  hardly 
of  patriotism  in  so  young  a  child." 

Mr.  Austin  was  beginning  to  share  his  son's 
interest  in  the  Raymonds,  and  the  two  had  been 
furtively  watching  the  little  scene,  attracted  by 
the  animated  expression  of  the  faces  of  the  cap 
tain,  Max,  and  Lulu,  as  they  talked. 

"  They  seem  a  happy  and  affectionate  trio," 
Mr.  Austin  remarked  to  Albert. 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  and  you  were  right  about  their 
being  Americans.  I  asked  the  little  girl  if  she 
wasn't  English,  and  to  my  astonishment  she 
seemed  almost  indignant  at  the  bare  idea." 

"  Ah,  indeed  !  then  I  fancy  she  has  never 
seen  England." 

"  No,  sir,  she  said  she  never  had  ;  but  if  you 
had  seen  the  look  in  her  eyes  when  she  told  me 
she  was  every  inch  an  American,  you  would 
hardly  expect  even  a  sight  of  old  England  to 
make  her  change  her  mind." 

"  It's  a  great  country,  certainly  ;  immensely 


138          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

larger  than  our  favored  isle  ;  and  had  it  been 
our  birthplace,  it  is  quite  possible  we  might 
have  shared  her  feeling  ;  but  as  it  is,  we  assur 
edly  looked  upon  Great  Britain  as  the  most 
favored  land  the  sun  shines  on." 

"  And  he  shines  always  upon  some  part  of  the 
empire,"  responded  Albert,  with  proudly  beam 
ing  eyes. 

It  was  not  until  in  the  afternoon  of  the  next 
day  the  Raymonds  reached  their  destination, — 
Minersville,  a  town  not  yet  three  years  old,  that 
had  sprung  up  within  that  period  of  time,  upon  a 
tract  of  land  owned  by  the  captain,  and  grown 
with  a  rapidity  that  might  well  remind  one  of 
Jonah's  gourd,  "  which  came  up  in  a  night."  It 
was  all  the  result  of  the  discovery  of  gold  in  the 
immediate  vicinity.  The  mine — a  very  produc 
tive  one — was  still  largely  'owned  by  Captain 
Raymond,  also  the  greater  part  of  the  town,  and 
a  coal  mine  at  no  great  distance  from  the  place. 

The  two  yielded  him  a  large  income — aug 
mented  by  the  fortunate  investment  of  very  con 
siderable  sums  realized  on  the  sales  of  stock  and 
town  lots  ;  so  that  he  was  indeed  a  wealthy  man. 

He  and  Mr.  Austin  had  made  acquaintance 
by  this  time,  and  were  mutually  pleased.  The 
same  thing  had  happened  with  their  sons,  and 
the  Englishman,  after  learning  from  the  captain 
what  was  his  destination,  the  history  of  Miners 
ville,  and  something  of  the  opportunities  and 


ELSIE  AND  TEE  RAYMONDS.          139 

facilities  for  hunting  bears,  deer,  and  other  game 
in  that  region.,  had  decided  to  make  a  halt  there 
for  a  few  days  or  weeks,  Captain  Raymond 
having  given  him  a  cordial  invitation  to  inspect 
the  mines  and  join  him  in  hunting  expeditions. 

The  town  already  boasted  several  thousand 
inhabitants,  two  churches,  a  bank,  post-office,  a 
fine  public  school  building,  dry  goods  and 
grocery  stores,  mills,  factories,  and  two  hotels. 

To  one  of  these  last  went  Mr.  Austin  and 
Albert,  but  Captain  Raymond — particularly  on 
account  of  having  his  children  with  him — pre 
ferred  a  private  boarding-house,  and,  through 
his  business  agent  and  mine-superintendent,  Mr. 
John  Short,  had  already  engaged  rooms  with  a 
Scotch  lady,  Mrs.  McAlpine  by  name,  whom 
Short  recommended  as  a  good  housekeeper  and 
one  who  kept  an  excellent  table. 

Our  party  had  scarcely  left  the  train  when  a 
gentlemanly  looking  man  approached,  and  lift 
ing  his  hat,  said,  "  My  name  is  Short.  Do  I  ad 
dress  Captain  Raymond  ?  " 

"  That  is  my  name,  sir,"  rejoined  the  captain, 
offering  his  hand,  which  the  other  took  and 
shook  heartily. 

"  Glad  to  meet  you,  sir;  very  glad;  have  often 
wished  you  would  come  out  and  see  your  prop 
erty  here  for  yourself.  It's  well  worth  looking 
after,  I  assure  you." 

"  I  am  quite  convinced  of  that,"  the  captain 


140         ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

«aid,  with  a  smile.  "  Also  I  do  not  doubt  that 
it  has  been  well  looked  after  by  my  agent,  Mr. 
Short." 

"  Thanks,  sir,"  returned  Short,  bowing  and 
smiling  in  acknowledgment.  "  And  these  are 
the  son  and  daughter  you  wrote  me  you  would 
bring  with  you  ?  "  he  remarked,  with  an  inquir 
ing  glance  at  the  children. 

"  Yes,"  replied  the  captain,  looking  down  at 
the  two  with  fatherly  pride  and  affection. 
"  Max  and  Lulu  are  their  names.  I  am  so 
domestic  a  man  that  I  could  not  persuade  my 
self  to  leave  all  my  family  behind  when  expect 
ing  to  be  absent  so  long  from  home." 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  I'm  not  surprised  at  that.  WeU> 
sir,  I  think  Mrs.  McAlpine  will  make  you  com 
fortable.  She  has  two  sets  of  boarders,  mill  oper 
atives  and  miners,  who  eat  in  the  kitchen,  and  a 
few  gentlemen  and  a  lady  or  two  who  take  their 
meals  in  the  dining-room.  But  she  has  agreed  to 
give  up  her  own  private  sitting-room  at  meal 
times  to  you  and  your  family  (as  you  stated  in 
your  letter  of  instruction  you  wished  a  private 
table  for  yourself  and  children) ;  for  a  considera 
tion,  of  course,"  he  added  with  a  laugh.  "But 
knowing  you  could  well  afford  it,  and  were  not 
disposed  to  be  close,  I  did  not  hesitate  to  accept 
her  terms." 

"  Quite  right,"  replied  the  captain.  "  And 
as  to  sleeping  accommodations?" 


EL8IL  AXL  THb  RAYMONDS.         141 

"  She  can  let  you  have  a  room  of  pretty  good 
§ize  for  yourself  and  son,  with  a  small  one  open 
ing  into  it  for  the  little  girl — or  perhaps  I  should 
rather  say  the  young  lady — your  daughter." 

"  She  is  only  a  little  girl, — her  father's  little 
girl,  as  she  likes  to  call  herself,"  returned  the 
captain,  smiling  do\vn  at  Lulu  and  affectionately 
pressing  the  hand  she  had  slipped  into  his  while 
they  stood  talking. 

"Yes,"  she  said,  laughing  and  blushing,  "I 
do  like  it ;  I'm  not  in  a  bit  of  a  hurry  to  be  a 
young  lady." 

"  No,  Miss,  I  wouldn't  if  I  were  you,"  laughed 
Mr.  Short.  "Those  changes  come  to  us  all 
only  too  fast.  Shall  I  show  you  the  way  to  your 
quarters,  captain  ?  I  did  not  order  a  carriage, 
as  it  is  hardly  more  than  a  step  ;  and  judging  by 
my  own  past  experience,  I  thought  you'd  be 
glad  of  a  chance  to  use  your  limbs  after  being 
cramped  up  in  the  cars  for  so  long." 

"  You  were  not  mistaken  in  that.  I  think  ve 
all  feel  it  rather  a  relief,"  the  captain  made 
answer,  as  they  moved  on  together. 

A  very  short  walk  brought  them  to  the  door 
of  the  boarding-house.  They  were  admitted 
by  a  rather  comely  girl,  apparently  about  fifteen 
years  of  age,  whom  their  conductor  addressed 
as  "Miss  Marian,"  and  introduced  as  the 
daughter  of  Mrs.  McAlpine.  She  invited  them 
into  the  parlor,  and  went  in  search  of  her 


142          ELSIE  AND  TEE  RAYMONDS. 

mother,  returning  with  her  almost  immediately. 
She  was  a  middle-aged  woman,  with  a  gentle, 
ladylike  manner,  that  was  very  pleasing,  and 
the  remains  of  considerable  beauty,  but  had, 
Captain  Raymond  thought,  one  of  the  saddest 
faces  he  had  ever  seen  ;  there  were  depths  of 
woe  in  the  large  gray  eyes  that  touched  him  to 
the  heart ;  yet  the  prevailing  expression  of  her 
countenance  was  that  of  patient  resignation. 

"  She  is  evidently  a  great  sufferer  from  some 
cause,"  he  said  to  himself  ;  "  probably  an  incon 
solable  widow,  as  I  have  heard  no  mention  of  a 
Mr.  Me  Alpine." 

She  bade  them  welcome,  and  inquired  what 
they  would  have  for  their  evening  meal,  and 
how  soon  they  would  like  it  served. 

The  captain  answered  these  questions,  then 
requested  to  be  shown  to  the  sleeping-rooms  set 
apart  for  their  use  during  their  stay. 

"I  fear,  sir,  they  will  seem  but  poor  and  mean 
after  such  as  you  and  the  young  folks  have  no 
doubt  been  accustomed  to,"  she  said,  leading  the 
way:  "but  they  are  the  best  I  can  provide,  and  I 
trust  you  will  find  them  clean  and  comfortable. 

"  Our  nights  are  cool,  even  when  the  days  are 
very  warm,  and  you  will  get  the  mountain 
breeze  here  ;  which  is  a  thing  to  be  thankful 
for,  to  my  way  of  thinking,"  she  added,  drawing 
back  the  curtain  from  an  open  window  of  the 
room  into  which  she  had  conducted  them. 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          143 

The  captain  stepped  to  it  and  looked  out. 
"  Yes,"  he  said,  "  and  a  fine  view  of  the  moun 
tains  themselves,  with  a  pretty  flower-garden 
and  orchard  in  the  foreground,  a  river  and 
wooded  hills  between  ;  a  beautiful  prospect  ; 
another  cause  for  thankfulness,  I  think.  The 
room,  too,  is  of  fair  size,"  turning  from  the 
window  and  glancing  about  him.  "That  open 
door  I  presume  leads  into  the  one  my  little  girl 
is  to  occupy?" 

"  Yes,  sir.  It  is  not  large,  but  I  have  no 
other  communicating  bedrooms,  and  Mr.  Short 
said  you  wrote  particularly  that  they  must  be 
such,  or  yours  large  enough  for  a  corner  of  it 
to  be  curtained  off  for  the  young  miss." 

"  Yes  ;  so  I  did  :  and  she,  I  know,  would 
prefer  a  small  room  with  an  open  door  into 
mine,  to  a  large  and  better  one  with  a  separat 
ing  wall  between,"  smiling  down  into  Lulu's 
eager,  interested  face,  at  that  instant  upturned 
to  his. 

"  Indeed,  I  should,  papa,"  she  responded,  slip 
ping  a  hand  confidingly  into  his  and  returning 
his  smile  with  one  of  ardent,  filial  affection. 

Tears  sprang  to  the  sad  eyes  of  Mrs.  Me  Al 
pine  at  the  sight,  and  it  was  a  moment  before 
she  could  command  her  voice  to  speak.  "When 
able  to  do  so,  excusing  herself  upon  the  plea 
that  domestic  duties  required  her  attention,  she 
left  them. 


344          ELSIE  AND   TEE  RAYMONDS. 

"  I  want  to  see  my  room,"  said  Lulu,  hurry 
ing  toward  the  open  door  ;  then,  as  she  gained 
a  view  of  the  whole  interior,  "  I  should  say  it 
was  small !  one  window,  one  chair,  a  single  bed, 
a  little  bit  of  a  wash-stand,  and  just  barely  room 
to  move  back  and  forth  beside  the  bed.  How 
different  from  my  lovely  rooms  at  home  !  "  she 
ended  with  a  pout  and  frown. 

"  I  am  sorry  it  is  not  more  to  your  liking, 
my  dear  child,"  the  captain  remarked,  in  a 
kindly,  sympathizing  tone,  "but  it  cannot  be 
helped  now.  Does  my  little  girl  begin  to  wish 
her  father  had  left  her  at  home  ? "  he  asked, 
laying  his  hand  tenderly  on  her  head,  for  he 
had  followed  her  and  now  stood  close  at  her 
side. 

"  Oh,  no,  no,  dear  papa !  and  I'm  quite 
ashamed  of  my  grumbling,"  she  returned,  tak 
ing  his  hand  in  both  of  hers  and  laying  her 
cheek  affectionately  against  it. 

"  You  wouldn't  do  to  go  into  the  navy,  Lu, 
if  you  can't  put  up  with  narrow  quarters  some 
times,"  remarked  Max  sportively.  "So  it's  a 
good  thing  you're  not  a  boy." 

"  Of  course  it  is,"  she  answered  in  a  sprightly 
tone.  "  Who  that  might  be  a  girl  would  ever 
want  to  be  a  boy  ?  Not  I,  I'm  sure." 

"  Not  even  for  the  sake  of  being  able  to  grow 
up  into  such  a  man  as  papa  ?  " 

"  No,  I  couldn't  have  any  hope  of  that  any- 


BL81E  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          145 

how,  for  there's  nobody  in  all  the  world  like 
papa — so  dear  and  good  and  kind  and  handsome 
and—" 

"  There,  that  will  do,"  laughed  the  captain, 
bending  down  and  stopping  the  next  word  with 
a  kiss  full  upon  her  lips;  "it  is  enough,  and 
more  than  enough,  and  we  must  be  getting  rid 
of  the  dust  of  travel  and  making  ourselves  neat 
for  the  tea-table,"  he  added. 

"  Yes,  sir;  I'm  glad  to  be  out  of  the  cars  for  a 
while,  after  being  in  them  so  long  ;  and  these 
rooms  are  neat  as  wax,  if  the  furniture  is  scanty, 
and  poor,  and  plain.  I  shan't  mind  that  a  bit, 
as  it's  only  for  a  short  time,  and  I  wouldn't 
have  been  left  behind  for  anything.  I  hope  I'll 
not  complain  any  more,  papa;  I  don't  intend  to. 
But,"  in  sudden  dismay,  "  oh,  where  am  I  to  put 
my  trunk?" 

Her  father  and  brother  both  laughed  at  her 
perplexed,  woebegone  countenance. 

"  You'll  have  to  decide  that  question  very 
soon,  for  here  they  come,"  said  Max,  glancing 
from  the  window. 

"  Don't  be  troubled,  dear  child ;  we  will  find 
a  place  for  it  in  this  outer  room,"  added  her 
father  cheerily,  and  glancing  about  in  search  of 
one.  "Ah,  it  can  stand  in  this  corner  close  by 
your  door.  Does  that  suit  your  ideas  and 
wishes,  daughter?" 

"Yes,  sir;  it  will  be  the  most  convenient  place 


146          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

for  me,"  she  answered,  in  a  bright,  cheery  tone, 
quite  restored  to  good-humor. 

The  trunks  had  already  been  brought  in  and 
deposited  according  to  directions. 

"  Will  you  have  anything  out  of  this,  daugh 
ter  ?  "  the  captain  asked,  unstrapping  Lulu's. 

"  Another  dress,  papa,  if  you  are  willing  to 
let  me  change;  this  travelling  one  feels  hot  and 
dusty." 

"My  dear  child,  can  you  suppose  I  would 
want  you  to  be  uncomfortable  ? "  he  asked. 
"  Give  me  your  key,  and  we  will  have  the  dress 
out  immediately." 

"Thank  you,  papa,"  she  said,  taking  the  key 
from  her  travelling  bag  and  handing  it  to  him. 
"  Please  choope  for  me,  the  one  you  think  most 
suitable." 

"Do  you  feel  inclined  for  a  stroll  about  the 
town  with  your  father  and  Max  after  tea  ?  "  he 
asked. 

"  Oh,  yes,  sir,  yes  indeed  !  " 

"You  are  not  too  tired?"  he  questioned, 
Bmiling  at  her  eager,  joyous  tone. 

"  Oh,  no,  sir,  not  at  all.  I  think  I  shall  feel 
as  fresh  as  a  lark  after  I  have  washed  and 
dressed  and  had  my  supper." 

"Then  this  will  be  quite  suitable,"  he  said,  lift 
ing  out  a  cream-colored  serge  with  collar  and  cuffs 
of  red  velvet  and  a  bordering  of  Indian  embroid 
ery  in  which  the  same  shade  was  quite  prominent. 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          147 

"The  very  dress  I'd  have  chosen  myself, 
papa,"  she  remarked,  with  a  pleased  laugh. 
"  And  when  we  take  our  walk  I  must  wear  the 
hat  that  matches.  I  do  like  to  wear  things  that 
match  or  contrast  prettily  and  suit  my  com 
plexion." 

"Well,  daughter,  since  our  kind  heavenly 
Father  has  made  so  many  things  beautiful  to 
our  eyes,  the  sunset  clouds  with  their  gorgeous 
hues,  the  myriads  of  lovely  flowers  and  fruits,  to 
mention  only  a  few — I  think  it  cannot  be 
wrong  for  us  to  enjoy  pretty  things.  Still,  my 
dear  little  girl  must  be  on  her  guard  against 
vanity  and  pride,  because  of  being  well  and 
tastefully  attired,  and  careful  not  to  give  too 
much  of  her  time  and  thoughts  to  dress." 


CHAPTER  X. 

\ 

"  WELL,  it  is  nice  to  be  going  to  eat  in  a  house 
again  and  no  strangers  by,"  remarked  Lulu 
when  they  had  seated  themselves  at  the  table  in 
Mrs.  McAlpine's  sitting-room,  and  the  captain 
had  asked  a  blessing  on  their  food. 

"So  it  is,"  responded  Max;  "it  would  seem 
something  like  home,  if  we  had  Mamma  Yi, 
Gracie,  and  the  little  ones  here  with  us." 

"  Yes,"  assented  their  father  with  a  slight 
sigh,"  they  make  the  best  part  of  home.  We 
must  look  for  the  post-office  when  we  are  out. 
I  hope  we  shall  find  letters  there  from  home, 
and  I  have  one  to  mail  to  your  mamma." 

"  Why,  when  did  you  write  it,  papa  ?  "  asked 
Lulu. 

"  While  you  were  dressing." 

"  Was  I  so  very  slow  ?  " 

"  No,  but  you  see  I  had  the  advantage  of  you 
in  not  needing  to  change  my  dress." 

With  that  Marian,  who  had  just  brought  in 
a  plate  of  hot  cakes,  glanced  admiringly  at 
Lulu's  costume. 

"  What  a  pretty  girl  that  little  Miss  Ray 
mond  is,  and  so  beautifully  dressed  !  "  she  re- 
148 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          149 

marked  to  her  mother  on  going  back  to  the 
kitchen.  "  It  must  be  a  grand  thing  to  be  the 
daughter — " 

"  Don't  allow  yourself  to  envy  her,  my  child," 
interrupted  the  mother,  "  'tis  God  appoints  our 
lot,  and  we  must  strive  to  be  submissive  and 
content." 

" Mother,"  cried  the  girl,  almost  fiercely,  "ye 
needna  tell  me  God  appointed  this  lot  for  you 
and  me.  I'll  never  believe  it,  never  !  'Twas  the 
father  o'  lies  brought  us  here  an'  keeps  us  here, 
and  oh,  but  I  wad  we  had  never  left  bonny 
Scotland ! " 

"  Hush,  hush,  child  !  bairn,  your  wild  words 
but  add  to  the  weight  o'  the  cross  already 
almost  too  heavy  for  your  mother  to  bear,"  re 
turned  Mrs.  McAlpine,  catching  her  breath  with 
a  half  sob.  "  Here,  carry  this  to  the  guests  in 
the  sitting-room,"  giving  her  another  plate  of 
cakes,  just  taken  from  the  griddle. 

"Can  you  tell  me  where  to  find  the  post- 
office,  Miss  Marian  ?  "  Captain  Raymond  asked, 
as  she  again  stood  at  his  side,  offering  her 
cakes. 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  'tis  just  around  the  corner,  on  the 
way  to  the  mine.  If  you  want  to  send  there, 
sir,  Sandy,  my  brother,  will  go  for  you  willingly. 
They  must  be  making  up  the  mail  for  the  East 
now,  and  it  will  close  presently." 

"  Then  I  accept  your  offer  of  your  brother'g 


150          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

services,  with  thanks,"  he  said,  taking  a  letter 
from  his  pocket  and  giving  it  to  her.  "  Please 
ask  him  to  carry  this  at  once  to  the  post-office, 
and  see  that  it  gets  into  the  mail ;  then  inquire 
for  letters  for  Captain  L.  Raymond,  Master  Max, 
and  Miss  Lulu  Raymond." 

"I  will,  sir,"  she  replied,  taking  the  letter  and 
hurrying  from  the  room  with  it. 

A  few  minutes  later  a  boy  who  looked  to  be 
two  or  three  years  younger  than  Marian  came 
briskly  in  and,  laying  a  handful  of  letters  on  the 
table  beside  the  captain,  said,  "  Several  for  you, 
sir,  and  one  apiece  for  Master  and  Miss.  And 
the  one  I  took  for  you  is  gone  with  the  rest  o' 
the  mail  for  the  East." 

"  I  am  much  obliged,"  the  captain  said,  put 
ting  a  dime  into  his  hand. 

The  boy  glanced  down  at  it.  "  That's  too 
much,  sir,  by  half,  the  errand  wasn't  worth  a 
nickel,  and  in  fact  I  didn't  expect  any  pay  for 
doing  it." 

"  Then  take  the  dime  as  a  gift,  my  boy ;  I 
like  your  honesty,"  returned  the  captain. 

"  Thank  you,  sir,"  responded  the  lad  heartily, 
and  with  a  grin  of  satisfaction,  as  he  turned 
and  hastened  away  again. 

"  Papa,  is  there  one  for  me  ?  "  asked  Lulu,  as 
her  father  took  up  the  letters  and  glanced  at 
the  superscriptions. 

"  Yes,  daughter ;    and  one  for  Max.     But  as 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          151 

we  have  all  finished  eating  we  will  go  to  our 
room  to  read  them." 

The  letters  brought  only  good  news ;  the 
dear  ones  left  behind  were  all  well,  and,  though 
missing  the  absentees,  content  and  happy,  at 
least  so  far  as  could  be  gathered  from  the  cheer 
ful  tone  of  their  epistles. 

Lulu's  was  the  joint  production  of  Eva  and 
Grace,  and  gave  an  interesting  account  of  the 
doings  and  sayings  of  the  babies  and  the  parrot. 
The  last-named,  they  said,  was  continually 
calling  "  Lu,  Lu,  what  you  'bout  ?  Where  you 
been  ?  " 

The  letter  told,  too,  of  the  beautiful  sing 
ing  of  Grade's  canaries,  the  doings  of  her 
kitten,  and  of  Max's  big  dog  Prince.  There 
was  more  about  the  last-named  in  Max's  own 
letter,  which  was  from  Violet,  with  a  postscript 
by  Grace. 

The  captain  read  his  letter  from  Violet,  first 
to  himself,  then  portions  of  it  aloud  to  the  chil 
dren  ;  then  they  offered  him  theirs,  and  he  read 
them  aloud  in  turn,  and  chatted  pleasantly  with 
them  about  the  contents  of  all  three. 

"  Well,"  he  said  at  length,  "if  we  are  going 
to  take  that  walk,  it  is  about  time  we  were  set 
ting  out.  Lulu,  you  may  put  on  your  hat, 
while  I  glance  over  these  other  letters." 

That  was  a  welcome  order  to  the  little  girl, 
and  it  did  not  take  her  many  minutes  to  obey 


152          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

it.  They  found  Mr.  Short  on  the  pavement 
before  the  front  gate  as  they  went  out. 

"  Ah,  captain,"  he  said,  "  I  was  just  coming 
to  ask  if  you  did  not  feel  inclined  for  a  stroll 
about  the  town.  May  I  have  the  pleasure  of 
acting  as  your  guide  ?  " 

"  It  will  be  conferring  a  favor,  sir,  if  you  will 
do  so,"  replied  the  person  addressed,  and  the 
two  walked  on,  leaving  Max  and  Lulu  to  follow. 

"  I  wish  he  hadn't  come,"  she  muttered  dis 
contentedly.  "  I  thought  I  was  going  to  have 
the  pleasure  of  walking  beside  papa  with  my 
hand  in  his." 

"  That's  very  pleasant  for  you,"  said  Max, 
"  but  I  think  you  might  care  almost  as  much  to- 
walk  with  me,  considering  that  you'll  probably 
not  have  many  more  such  opportunities  to 
do  so." 

"  Oh,  I  forgot  that !  Oh,  I  wish  you  weren't 
going  away  from  home,  Max  !  "  she  exclaimed. 
"  I  seem  to  grow  fonder  of  you  than  ever  when 
I  think  of  that !  " 

"  Yes,  blessings  brighten  as  they  take  their 
flight,"  he  returned,  with  a  little  laugh  that 
sounded  rather  forced. 

The  new  home  made  by  his  father  for  him 
and  the  others,  and  especially  the  being  taken 
by  that  father  into  a  close  intimacy,  friendship, 
and  confidence,  such  as  are  seldom  given  by  a 
parent  to  a  son  of  his  age,  had  been  so  delight- 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.         153 

ful  that  the  thought  of  going  away  among 
strangers,  leaving  all  the  dear  ones  behind,  and 
having  communication  with  his  father  only  by 
letter,  instead  of  the  pleasant  daily  and  hourly 
familiar  intercourse,  could  not  fail  to  cause  the 
boyish  heart  a  pang. 

Yet,  on  the  other  hand,  there  was  joy  and 
exultation  in  the  thought  that  he  was  about  to 
enter  upon  special  preparation  for  his  chosen 
profession,  the  work  that  he  was  to  do  as  a 
man ;  it  seemed  to  him  the  beginning  of  the 
putting  away  of  childish  things,  the  putting  on 
of  the  armor,  and  the  gathering  up  of  the 
weapons,  for  the  great  battle  of  life,  and  at 
times  he  was  eager  for  the  day  when  he  should 
appear  before  the  examiners  at  Annapolis. 

"  Yes,  and  you  are  a  blessing  to  me,  Maxie  ; 
you  always  have  been,"  Lulu  said  in  reply. 
"  And  I  am  sure  papa  thinks  you  a  very  great 
one  to  him." 

The  captain's  quick  ear  caught  the  words,  and 
he  glanced  smilingly  round  at  the  two  without 
pausing  in  his  talk  with  his  agent. 

Mr.  Short  gave  the  names  of  the  streets  as  they 
passed  along,  pointed  out  the  public  buildings 
and  the  prettiest  private  residences,  telling  to 
whom  each  one  belonged,  and  sometimes  adding  a 
little  character  sketch  in  a  humorous  or  slightly 
satirical  vein.  He  seemed  a  good-natured,  jovial 
•ort  of  man,  and  anxious  to  entertain  and  amuse. 


154          ZLklE  A2tD   THE  RAYMONDS. 

It  did  not  take  long  to  traverse  the  town,  and 
having  presently  reached  the  outskirts,  they 
ascended  an  eminence  from  whence  might  be 
obtained  a  bird's-eye  view  of  the  whole  place 
and  its  surroundings  of  valley  and  wooded 
hills. 

They  paused  here  to  gaze  upon  the  landscape 
spread  out  at  their  feet,  and  Lulu,  stepping  to 
her  father's  side,  quietly  slipped  her  hand  into 
his.  His  fingers  closed  affectionately  over  it, 
and  he  gave  her  a  pleased,  loving  look,  though 
he  seemed  to  be  listening  attentively  to  some 
thing  Mr.  Short  was  saying  about  the  mine. 

•"  I  must  visit  it  to-morrow,  if  the  weather  is 
favorable,"  the  captain  said  in  reply.  "  I  want 
to  take  my  children  with  me,  and  as  I  expect  to 
be  in  the  vicinity  for  several  weeks,  there  is  no 
special  haste  ;  no  need  of  hurrying  out  there 
through  a  storm." 

"  Oh,  I  do  hope  the  weather  will  be  good  !  " 
exclaimed  Lulu,  while  she  and  Max  exchanged 
glances  of  delight. 

"  I  think  there  is  every  indication  of  pleasant 
weather  for  some  days  to  come,"  remarked  Mr. 
Short. 

"  Is  it  far  to  the  mine  ?  "  asked  Lulu  ;  "  will 
we  have  to  ride  or  drive  ?  " 

"  No,  Miss ;  I  think  even  you  could  easily 
walk  it,"  replied  Mr.  Short.  "  The  distance  is 
not  over  a  mile." 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          155 

"Then  I  can,"  she  said  ;  "I've  walked  more 
than  two  miles  many  a  time." 

"  No  doubt  of  it,"  said  her  father  ;  "  but  you 
must  have  a  pony  for  longer  excursions.  Have 
you  succeeded  in  securing  a  suitable  one,  Mr. 
Short  ?  Horses  for  myself  and  son,  also  ?  " 

Short  replied  to  the  effect  that  he  had  suc 
ceeded  in  procuring  a  steed  for  each  of  them, 
which,  though  probably  by  no  means  equal  to 
those  they  were  accustomed  to  at  home,  would, 
he  hoped,  answer  their  purpose  quite  well. 

"Are  you  accustomed  to  riding  horseback, 
Miss  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  Oh,  yes,"  Lulu  said.  "  Papa  gave  me  a 
pony  of  my  own  more  than  a  year  ago,  and 
before  that  I  used  to  ride  one  belonging  to 
somebody  else." 

"  Here  come  Mr.  Austin  and  Albert  up  the 
hill,"  said  Max,  and  the  next  moment  the  Eng 
lish  gentleman  and  his  son  had  joined  them 
selves  to  the  little  group. 

They  and  Mr.  Short  had  already  made  ac 
quaintance.  Polite  greetings  were  exchanged, 
and  then  all  stood  together  watching  the  sun  as 
he  sank  behind  the  western  hills. 

It  was  a  grand  sunset,  the  whole  western  hori 
zon  ablaze  with  gold,  orange, "  and  flame  color, 
shading  off  here  and  there  into  the  more  deli 
cate  shades — rose,  pale-green,  and  amber. 

They  lingered    for  many    minutes,    silently 


-156          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

gazing  upon  the  ever-changing  panorama  until 
most  of  its  glories  had  faded  away,  then  slowly 
descended  the  hill  and  wended  their  way  back 
to  their  temporary  abodes. 

It  was  growing  dark,  the  stars  coming  out 
one  by  one  overhead,  and  a  young  moon  show 
ing  herself  above  the  hilltops,  when  the  captain 
and  his  children  re-entered  Mrs.  McAlpine's 
gate  and  walked  up  the  path  leading  to  the 
front  porch. 

There  were  several  persons  sitting  there, 
among  them  the  lady  of  the  house.  She  rose, 
said  "  Good-evening,"  and  turning  to  a  gentle 
man  who  had  risen  also,  introduced  him  as  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Green. 

He  and  Capt.  Raymond  shook  hands  cordially, 
each  expressing  pleasure  at  the  meeting,  and 
when  Max  and  Lulu  had  also  been  introduced, 
and  all  were  seated,  the  two  gentlemen  fell  into 
earnest  discourse,  the  mission  work  and  its  in 
terests  and  needs  in  that  region  of  country 
being  their  principal  theme. 

The  children  listened  in  silence,  and  pres 
ently  learned  from  the  remarks  of  the  minister, 
what  was  news  to  them — that  their  father  had 
given  town  lots  for  church,  parsonage,  and 
schoolhouse,  and  nearly  the  whole  amount  of 
money  their  erection  had  cost. 

"  Papa  must  be  rich,  very  rich,  Max,"  whis 
pered  Lulu  in  her  brother's  ear. 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          15? 

"  Yes  ;  and  generous  too  ;  far  more  generous 
and  liberal  than  most  folks,"  Max  whispered 
back.  "  I'm  proud  as  can  be  of  being  his  son." 

'•And  I  of  being  his  daughter,"  she  returned. 

They  gave  expression  to  these  sentiments  in 
talking  with  their  father  when,  a  little  later,, 
they  found  themselves  alone  with  him  in  his 
room. 

"  My  dears,"  he  said,  "  as  I  have  often  told 
you,  the  money  is  the  Lord's  and  I  am  only  his 
steward.  How,  then,  could  I  do  otherwise  than 
use  it  for  the  advancement  of  his  cause  and 
kingdom  ?  " 

"  Yes,  papa,  and  you  did  it  for  the  good  of 
our  dear  country,  too,  didn't  you  ?"  asked  Lulu, 
taking  a  seat  upon  his  knee  and  putting  an  arm 
affectionately  about  his  neck. 

"  Yes,  daughter ;  for  if  we  would  ensure  her 
safety,  we  must  all  do  battle  earnestly  against, 
the  threatening  evils  of  ignorance,  error,  and 
superstition ;  the  only  way  to  preserve  the  lib 
erties  of  this  land,  and  make  her  a  power  for 
good  to  the  rest  of  the  world,  is  to  instruct  and 
evangelize  all  classes,  whether  native  or  foreign 
born. 

"  Now,"  he  continued,  opening  a  Bible  which 
he  had  taken  from  his  trunk  and  laid  upon  a  table, 
before  going  out,  "  we  will  close  the  day  with 
reading  and  prayer,  as  we  do  at  home,  and  go  ta 
our  rest,  for  we  are  all  in  need  of  it,  I  think." 


158          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

He  kept  Lulu  on  his  knee  while  he  read,  one 
arm  about  her  waist,  and  Max's  chair  was  drawn 
close  up  on  the  other  side  ;  then  they  all  knelt 
together,  while  the  father  gave  thanks  for  all 
the  blessings  of  the  past  day,  made  confession 
of  sins,  and  implored  the  protecting  care  of 
their  heavenly  Father  through  the  silent  watches 
of  the  night  ;  for  themselves  and  the  dear  ones 
ones  far  away. 

The  captain  had  always  been  careful  not  to 
make  family  worship  seem  long  and  tedious  to 
his  children,  and  to-night  it  was  shorter  than 
usual,  in  consideration  for  their  weariness,  con 
sequent  upon  the  long  journey  but  just  com- 
pleted. 

When  they  had  risen  from  their  knees  he 
took  Lulu  in  his  arms  and  kissed  her  tenderly 
two  or  three  times,  saying,  "  Now  you  may  go 
to  your  own  little  room,  my  darling,  and  when 
you  are  quite  ready  for  bed  set  the  door  wride 
open,  so  that  you  can  feel  that  papa  is  near 
enough  to  hear  you  speak,  should  you  want 
anything  in  the  night." 

"  Max,  too,"  said  her  brother  laughingly,  and 
giving  her  a  kiss  in  his  turn,  "  so  that  if  any 
danger  threatens  you  there'll  be  two  knights  to 
fly  to  the  rescue." 

"Thank  you,"  she  returned  gayly,  "but  if  any 
thing  frightens  me  I  shall  run  right  to  papa  "  ; 
giving  him  another  hug  as  she  spoke. 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          159 

It  was  a  very  warm  evening,  and  the  windows 
of  the  room  were  wide  open  to  admit  the  air. 
Through  one  of  them,  looking  upon  the  garden, 
Marian  McAlpine  witnessed  the  little  scene  ; 
the  words  spoken  did  not  reach  her  ear,  but  she 
saw  the  expression  of  the  countenance  of  the 
captain  and  his  children,  and  the  cai'esses  given 
and  received. 

"What a  good,  kind  father  !  and  what  happy, 
happy  children  !  "  she  murmured  half  aloud,  as 
she  turned  away  with"  a  sigh  that  seemed  to  say 
her  own  lot  was  not  so  blessed. 

Passing  round  the  house  and  into  the  porch 
she  found  her  mother,  now  sitting  there 
alone. 

Taking  a  chair  close  by  her  side,  "  Mother," 
she  said,  "  I  think  that  Captain  Raymond  must 
be  a  very  good  man." 

"I  dare  say  he  is,  child  ;  certainly  he  has 
been  extremely  liberal  to  the  mission  cause  in 
this  town." 

"  And  he  looks  so  good  and  kind  and  seems 
so  fond  of  his  children,"  Marian  went  on.  "  I 
saw  him  reading  to  them  to-night — the  little 
girl  sitting  on  his  knee  and  the  boy  as  close  as 
he  could  well  get  by  his  side  ;  the  Bible  I  sup 
pose  it  was,  for  when  he  closed  it  they  all  three 
knelt  down  together,  and  I  could  hear  his  voice 
as  if  he  was  praying,  though  not  the  words. 
Then  they  got  up  and  hugged  and  kissed  each 


160          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

*>ther  good-night.  They're  the  very  happiest 
looking  people  I  ever  saw." 

"  So  I  think.  But,  Marian,  you  shouldn't  be 
spying  out  what  they  are  doing  in  the  privacy 
of  their  own  room." 

"I  didn't  mean  to,  mother,  but  I  happened  to 
look  up  at  their  window — the  light  was  so 
bright,  you  know — and  I  saw  the  girl  help  her 
self  to  a  seat  on  her  father's  knee,  just  as  if  she 
was  sure  he'd  like  her  to,  and  put  her  arm 
round  his  neck,  and  it  was  such  a  pretty  scene  I 
couldn't  help  standing  there  and  watching  them 
a  bit.  They  don't  have  to  share  their  father 
'with  a  lot  of  other  children  that  are  not  their 
mother's  too,"  she  added,  in  a  suppressed  and 
bitter  tone. 

"  Marian,  Marian,  hush  ! "  exclaimed  Mrs. 
McAlpine,  in  a  low  voice  quivering  with  pain  ; 
•"  is  your  end  of  the  cross  heavier  than  mine  ?  " 

"  No,  mother,  dear,  not  half  so  heavy  :  the 
cruelest  part  of  it  is  seeing  you  suffer— you, 
~who  are  as  good  and  pure  as  an  angel ! " 
returned  the  girl  passionately. 

"  Then  for  my  sake,  lass,  try  to  suffer  and  be 
still.  I've  a  hard  enough  fight  with  my  own 
rebellious  heart ;  at  times  I  feel  I  shall  never 
be  able  to  bring  it  into  meek  submission  to  His 
will  who  doeth  all  things  well." 

"  But  it  isn't  His  will !  it  isn't  His  doing  !  I'll 
never  believe  it,  no,  never  !  "  cried  the  girl, 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          16 1 

clinching  hands  and  teeth  in  impotent  fury ; 
"  it's  the  will  and  the  doings  of  the  adversary 
of  souls,  the  father  o'  lies,  him  that  the  Bible 
tells  us  was  a  murderer  from  the  beginning,  and 
abode  not  in  the  truth,  because  there  is  no  truth 
in  him." 

"  Marian,  Marian,  ye're  tempting  your  mother 
to  the  sin  she  maun  ficht  against  nicht  and  day," 
groaned  Mrs.  McAlpine,  relapsing  into  Scotch,, 
as  they  were  both  apt  to  do  under  strong  ex 
citement,  "  an'  oh,  beware,  lassie,  that  you  dinna 
•wrest  Scripture  to  ye'r  ain  destruction  and  to- 
mine." 

"  "Wrest  Scripture  !  'tis  they  wrest  it,"  cried  the 
girl,  in  tones  of  fierce  indignation  ;  but  before 
the  words  had  fairly  left  her  lips  her  mother 
had  risen  from  her  chair  and  fled  from  her 
presence,  as  one  would  fly  from  temptation. 

Marian  too  rose,  closed  the  house,  and  went 
to  bed,  while  alone  in  her  own  apartment  the 
mother  spent  a  long  time  upon  her  knees  wrest 
ling  in  prayer  for  submission  and  strength  to- 
endure  the  cross  she  mistakenly  deemed  that 
He,  her  loving  Lord  and  Master,  had  laid  upon 
her. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

MARIAN  Me  ALPINE  was  setting  the  breakfast- 
table  for  the  Raymonds,  when  Lulu  came  into 
the  room  looking  bright  and  fresh  in  one  of  the 
new  dresses  her  father  had  directed  to  be  made 
for  such  excursions  as  that  proposed  for  the  day. 

"  Good-morning,"  she  said,  in  a  pleasant, 
sprightly  tone. 

Marion  returned  the  salqtation,  and  Lulu 
went  on,  "  We  are  going  to  visit  the  mine  to 
day,  and  papa  sent  me  to  ask  if  you  would  like 
to  go  with  us." 

"  Thank  you,  Miss ;  it's  very  kind  in  your 
father  and  yourself  to  invite  me,  and  I  should 
be  blithe  to  go  if  mother  could  spare  me  ;  but 
I'm  afraid  she  can't.  Good  help  is  very  scarce 
about  here,  and  we  have  to  do  a  gi'eat  deal  of 
the  cooking  and  other  work  ourselves." 

"  I'm  sorry,"  said  Lulu  ;  "  I'd  like  very  much 
to  have  you  go,  for  my  own  sake  as  well  as 
yours,  for  there  will  be  no  lady  in  the  party,  and 
no  girl  but  me,  if  you  don't  go." 

"  But  you'll  not  mind  that,  with  such  a  kind, 
tender  father  as  yours,"  Marian  said,  a  little 
168 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.         163 

tremulously,  and  with  a  wistful  glance  into 
Lulu's  bright,  happy  face. 

"  No,  I'd  not  mind  going  to  the  world's  end 
with  papa,  and  nohody  else,"  returned  Lulu,  her 
cheeks  flushing  and  her  eyes  shining  with  joy 
and  filial  love.  "But  how  did  you  find  out 
what  a  dear,  kind  father  I  have  ?  " 

"  Surely,  Miss,  just  the  way  he  looks  at  you 
(as  if  to  his  mind  there  was  nothing  else  so 
sweet  and  fair  in  all  the  world)  is  enough  to  tell 
the  tale  to  any  one  but  the  dullest  of  the  dull," 

The  girl  sighed  involuntarily  as  she  spoke, 
and  turned  away — busying  herself  at  the  china 
closet — to  hide  her  emotion. 

"  And  you  have  none,  I  suppose  ?  Oh,  I  am 
so  sorry  for  you  ! "  Lulu  said,  in  a  gentle,  pity 
ing  tone. 

Marian  turned  toward  her  a  pale,  set  face, 
opened  her  lips  to  speak,  but  closed  them  again 
as  her  mother  entered  the  room. 

"  Good-day,  lassie,  you  look  bright  and  blithe 
as  the  morning,"  Mrs.  McAlpine  said,  addressing 
Lulu,  with  a  smile  that  was  sadder  than  tears  ; 
and  the  little  girl  noticed  that  her  face  was 
paler  than  on  the  previous  day,  her  countenance 
fuller  of  grief  and  woe,  though  she  was  evidently 
striving  to  be  cheerful. 

"Did  you  find  your  bed  comfortable  last 
night  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  Oh,  yes,  ma'am  ;  but  I  had  hardly  touched 


164          ELSIE  AND  THE  BAJHONDS. 

it  before  I  went  fast  asleep,  and  I  never  moved, 
I  believe,  till  the  sun  was  up." 

"  It  must  have  seemed  a  short  night  to  you. 
Sound  sleep  is  a  very  great  blessing,"  responded 
the  lady.  Then  asked,  "  And  what  are  your 
plans  for  the  day?  I  fear  you  will  find  little  to 
interest  you  in  this  small  town." 

"  Papa  is  going  to  take  us  to  look  at  the 
mine,"  said  Lulu,  "  and  we  would  be  pleased  to 
take  your  daughter  with  us,  if  you  can  spare 
her." 

"  Certainly;  Marian  gets  few  holidays,  and  I 
would  be  glad  to  have  her  go.  Tell  your  papa 
I  thank  him  for  the  invitation,  and  she  will  be 
ready  in  good  season." 

Marian's  eyes  sparkled,  and  her  face  wore  a 
glad,  eager  look  for  a  moment ;  then  it  changed 
and  she  said,  "  No,  mother,  I  can't  go  and  leave 
you  everything  to  do." 

"  There  is  not  so  much  to-day,  lass,  not  more 
than  I  can  easily  do  myself,"  returned  the 
mother  kindly,  "  and  I  shall  enjoy  hearing  your 
report  when  you  get  back." 

Thus  kindly  urged,  Mai-ian  gladly  accepted 
the  invitation.  Few  of  what  young  folks  are 
wont  to  call  "  good  times  "  came  into  her  life, 
and  a  visit  to  the  mine  had  never  been  one  of 
them. 

They  set  out  shortly  after  breakfast,  the 
party  consisting  of  Captain  Raymond  with  his 


ELSIE  AND   TEE  RAYMONDS.          165 

children  and  Marian,  Mr.  Austin  and  Albert, 
and  Mr.  Short,  who  acted  as  guide. 

The  two  girls  walked  together,  but  Lulu 
managed  to  keep  very  near  her  father.  That 
pleased  him,  both  as  an  evidence  of  her  ardent 
affection  and  because,  knowing  so  little  what 
sort  of  companion  Marian  would  prove,  he 
wanted  to  be  near  enough  to  overhear  their 
talk,  that  he  might  be  able  to  judge  what  in 
fluence  she  was  likely  to  exei*t  over  his  child. 
Mindful  of  the  declaration  of  Holy  Writ  that 
"  evil  communications  corrupt  good  manners," 
he  was  very  careful  in  regard  to  the  choice  of 
his  children's  associates.  Poverty,  if  not  united 
to  viciousness  or  vulgarity,  was  considered  no 
ground  of  objection,  while  wealth,  fine  dress,  or 
fine  manners  could  not  atone  for  lack  of  moral 
purity  and  refinement. 

Marian's  appearance  and  manners  had  pleased 
him,  and  nothing  that  he  saw  or  heard  during 
the  walk  had  any  tendency  to  lower  her  in  his 
estimation.  It  was  a  pleasant  walk,  much  of 
the  way  being  shaded  by  forest  trees,  and  a 
refreshing  breeze  tempering  the  heat  of  the 
weather.  The  girls  were  almost  sorry  when  it 
came  to  an  end.  ^ 

But  they  found  much  to  interest  them  in  and 
around  the  mine.  When  they  had  seen  all  that 
was  to  be  seen  and  were  about  to  return  to  the 
town,  Mr.  Short  proposed  their  doing  so  by  a 


166          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

different  route  from  that  by  which  they  had 
come.  It  was  a  little  longer,  he  said,  circling 
around  among  the  hills,  but  would  give  them 
some  fine  views  and  an  opportunity  to  gather  a 
variety  of  beautiful  wild-flowers. 

"Oh,  then,  do  please  let  us  go  that  way, 
papa  !  "  exclaimed  Lulu,  looking  up  at  him  with 
a  very  bright,  eager  face. 

"  If  it  suits  the  wishes  of  all  the  party, 
we  will,"  he  answered  in  an  indulgent 
tone.  "  "What  do  you  say  to  it,  Mr. 
Austin  ?  " 

"  That  it  suits  my  inclination  exactly,"  re 
turned  the  English  gentleman. 

"  Mine  also,"  added  Albert,  as  the  captain 
looked  inquiringly  at  him. 

"  And  it's  just  what  I'd  like,  too,  papa,"  said 
Max. 

"  And  I  offer  my  services  as  guide,"  said  Mr. 
Short. 

"  Then  the  question  is  settled  in  the  affirma 
tive,"  Captain  Raymond  said.  "  Mr.  Short,  will 
you  lead  the  way  ?  " 

It  was  just  dinner-time  when  they  reached 
home,  the  girls  bright-eyed  and  rosy-cheeked 
and  with  hands  full  of  flowers. 

"  Are  you  tired,  daughter  ? "  the  captain 
asked,  as  Lulu  was  taking  off  her  hat. 

"  Oh  no,  indeed,  papa  !  not  a  bit,"  she  ans 
wered.  "  What  a  delightful  morning  we  have 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          167 

had  !  Now  what  are  we  going  to  do  this  after 
noon  ?  " 

"  The  first  thing  is  to  eat  your  dinner,"  he 
said,  smiling  and  pinching  her  cheek,  then 
stooping  to  give  her  a  hearty  kiss. 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  I  feel  ready  to  do  it  justice,"  she 
returned,  putting  her  hand  into  his,  that  he 
might  lead  her  to  the  table. 

"  I  too,"  said  Max,  following  them,  "  I  don't 
know  when  I've  been  so  hungry." 

The  captain  had  asked  the  blessing,  and 
Marian  began  passing  the  plate  of  bread,  when  a 
voice,  apparently  that  of  a  boy  speaking  from 
the  garden,  said,  "Please,  Miss,  gimme  a  piece. 
I'm  awful  hungry  !  Didn't  have  a  mouthful  o' 
anything  to  eat  to-day." 

Marian  started  in  surprise,  then  went  toward 
the  window,  saying,  "A  beggar.  We  don't 
often  have  them  about  here.  Why,"  glancing 
out,  "  where  is  he  ?  " 

A  loud  barking,  that  seemed  to  come  from 
round  the  comer  of  the  house,  then  a  shrill  cry, 
"Oh,  oh,  call  him  off  !  he's  got  me  by  the  leg  ! 
he — he'll  tear  me  to  pieces  !  " 

"Towser,  Towser  ! "  called  Marian,  putting 
her  head  out  of  the  window,  "  let  him  go,  I 
tell  you  !  Come  here,  sir  !  come  here,  and  let 
that  fellow  alone  !  " 

Then  she  rushed  out  to  the  porch  to  look  for 
the  boy  and  dog,  but  was  back  again  in  a  mo- 


168          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

ment  all  breathless  with  bewilderment  and 
exertion. 

"  I  can't  find  either  of  them,"  she  panted, 
"  and  where  they  could  go  so  quickly  I  canna 
conjecture." 

Lulu  was  casting  mirthful  glances  at  Max, 
but  he  avoided  her  eye  and  went  on  with  his 
dinner  as  if  much  too  hungry  to  think  of  any 
thing  else. 

"  Both  boys  and  dogs  can  move  very  rapidly 
sometimes,"  remarked  the  captain,  in  reply  to 
the  girl.  "  But  don't  be  alarmed,  Miss  Marian, 
I  dare  say  the  beggar  has  come  to  no  worse 
harm  than  a  fright  sufficient  to  send  him  off  to 
get  a  meal  elsewhere.  And  now,  if  you  please, 
will  you  replenish  the  bread  plate?  Max  is 
emptying  it  very  fast." 

"  Oh,  yes,  sir,  and  I  hope  you  will  excuse  me 
for  neglecting  my  business,"  she  answered  smil 
ingly,  taking  up  the  plate  and  leaving  the 
room. 

"  Now,  Max,  own  up  that  that  was  you,"  said 
Lulu  laughing. 

"  That  what  was  ?  "  he  asked,  lifting  his  eye 
brows  in  mock  astonishment.  "  Do  you  mean 
to  insinuate  that  I'm  either  a  beggar  or  a  dog?  " 

"  No,"  laughed  Lulu  merrily,  "  but  you 
needn't  pretend  ignorance  ;  you  know  well 
enough  what  I  mean.  Well,  I  shant  let  Mar 
ian  into  the  secret  if  I  can  help  it ;  for  I  hope 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          169 

tre'll  have  some  more  fun  out  of  it.  Papa,  it 
was  right  good  in  you  not  to  explain." 

"  Was  it  ?  "  he  asked. 

But  Marian's  entrance  with  a  fresh  supply  of 
bread  put  an  end  to  talk  on  that  subject  for  the 
time. 

"  Papa,"  said  Lulu,  "  you  haven't  told  me  yet 
what  we  are  going  to  do  this  afternoon." 

"How  would  you  like  to  try  the  pony  Mr. 
Short  has  engaged  for  your  use  while  here  ? " 
he  asked  in  return. 

"  Oh,  very  much,  if  you  will  go  with  me  !  " 

"  I  shall  most  certainly  not  allow  you  to  go 
without  me,"  he  answered  with  a  tender,  loving 
look  into  the  bright  eyes  she  had  lifted  to  his. 

"  You  couldn't  trust  her  alone,  could  you, 
papa  ?  "  Max  said  teasingly. 

"  No,  nor  with  you,  nor  you  alone,"  answered 
his  father  with  sportive  look  and  tone. 

"  There  now,  Maxie,  don't  you  wish  you'd 
kept  quiet  ?  "  laughed  Lulu.  "  You  see  papa 
doesn't  consider  you  so  very  much  older  or 
wiser  than  I  am." 

"  I  don't  hope  I'll  ever  be  too  old  or  wise  to 
be  the  better  and  happier  of  papa's  company," 
Max  answered,  bestowing  upon  his  father  a  look 
of  deepest  respect  and  affection. 

"  I'm  glad  to  hear  that,  my  boy,"  the  captain 
responded,  his  eyes  shining  with  pleasure. 

"  Well,  then,  I  think  we  are  all  satisfied  that 


170         ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

the  arrangement  is  for  the  three  of  us  to  ride 
out  together." 

"And  Mr.  Short  to  go  along  to  show  us  the 
way  ?  "  queried  Lulu. 

"  Yes  ;  he  has  kindly  offered  to  do  so." 

"  I  do  think  he  has  the  wrong  name  alto 
gether,"  she  said  laughingly,  "  he  ought  to  be 
Mr.  Long." 

"People  hardly  ever  do  get  a  name  that  fits," 
remarked  Max  sagely  ;  "  Mr.  Carpenter  will  be 
a  shoemaker,  like  as  not,  or  a  merchant,  and 
Mr.  Shoemaker  a  hotel  keeper,  and  so  on." 

"  Yes,  that  is  rather  apt  to  be  the  case,"  as 
sented  his  father,  "  but  occasionally  a  man  does 
follow  the  trade  that  fits  his  name  ;  for  instance, 
I  used  to  know  a  Mr.  Cobbler  who  made,  and 
doubtless  mended,  shoes,  too." 

"  Max,  don't  you  remember  the  Browns  that 
lived  next  door  to  Aunt  Beulah  ?  "  asked  Lulu. 

"  Yes  ;  they  were  all  very  fair,  and  had  light 
hair  and  eyes.  And  Tom  White,  who  went  to 
the  same  school  I  did,  was  dark-complexioned 
and  had  eyes  as  black  as  sloes." 

"  Papa,"  asked  Lulu,  "  will  the  horses  and 
ponies  be  here  soon?  Will  we  take  our  ride 
soon  as  we  are  done  eating  ?  " 

"  No,  not  quite  ;  *  after  dinner  rest  awhile,'  is 
the  rule,  don't  you  know  ?  You  may  do  that  for 
fully  half  an  hour  while  I  write  to  your  mamma.'1 

"  Oh,  mayn't  I  write  too  ?  I'm  not  tired." 


SLSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          Ill 

"  Certainly,  if  you  wish  to ;  you  and  Max 
are  both  at  liberty  to  amuse  yourselves  during 
the  interval  before  our  ride.  Well,  what  is 
it,  daughter  ?"  noticing  a  slight  expression  of 
trouble  and  perplexity  in  her  speaking  counten 
ance. 

"Only  that  sometimes  I  forget  how  to  spell  a 
word,  papa,  and  what  am  I  to  do  about  it  ?  At 
home  you  always  tell  me  to  look  in  the  diction 
ary,  but  we  haven't  any  here." 

"  How  will  your  father  answer  for  one  ?  "  he 
asked,  with  sportive  look  and  tone. 

"  Oh,  nicely,  if  you'll  let  me  use  you,"  she  re- 
turned,  laughing. 

"I  will  when  there's  no  printed  one  at 
hand." 

"  Thank  you,  sir  ;  it  will  be  a  great  deal  less 
trouble  than  hunting  for  the  word  in  a  diction 
ary.  But  why  don't  you  let  me  iise  you  always 
when  you're  with  me  ?  " 

"  Because  I  think  the  spelling  will  be  more 
likely  to  be  impressed  upon  your  memory  by 
the  trouble  of  having  to  search  out  the  word  ; 
beside,  I  want  my  children  to  learn  the  lesson 
of  self-help.  We  should  never  trouble  others 
to  do  for  us  what  we  can  do  for  ourselves." 

"  I'll  try  always  to  remember  and  act  upon 
that,  papa,"  said  Max.  "  Isn't  it  the  people  that 
help  themselves  all  they  can,  who  are  most  apt 
to  succeed  in  life  ?  " 


172          ELSIE  AND  TEE  RAYMONDS. 

"Most  assuredly,  my  boy,"  replied  the  cap* 
tain,  as  they  left  the  table  and  retired  to  their 
own  apartments. 

"  My  letter  is  going  to  be  to  Gracie,"  Max 
remarked  as  he  took  out  his  writing  materials. 

"  Mine  too,"  said  Lulu  ;  "  I'm  going  to  tell 
her  about  our  walk  this  morning,  and  our  visit 
to  the  mine." 

"  Just  what  I  intended  doing,"  Max  said. 

"  Suppose  you  both  carry  out  your  intentions, 
and  then  compare  accounts,  to  see  how  they 
differ,"  suggested  their  father.  "Very  likely 
each  of  you  will  tell  something  that  the  other 
will  omit,  and  between  the  two  letters  Gracie 
"  will  get  a  better  idea  of  the  little  excursion  than 
she  could  from  either  one  alone." 

"  And  shall  we  show  them  to  you,  papa,  when 
done  ?  "  asked  Lulu. 

"  You  may  do  exactly  as  you  please  in  regard 
to  that,"  he  answered. 

All  three  pens  were  presently  scratching  away, 
the  captain's  more  rapidly,  and  with  fewer 
pauses,  than  the  other  two.  Presently  he  laid 
it  down  and  began  folding  his  sheet. 

Then  Max  did  the  same,  remarking  to  Lulu  a 
trifle  triumphantly,  "  I'm  done  first." 

"  Why  !  "  she  exclaimed,  "  I  haven't  finished 
telling  about  the  mine,  and  have  all  the  story 
about  the  walk  home  to  tell  yet." 

"Probably  you  are  going  more  into  detail 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          173 

than  Max  did,"  their  father  said,  "  and  that  is 
just  what  Gracie  will  enjoy." 

At  that  instant  Sandy  appeared  at  the  open 
door  with  the  announcement  that  the  horses 
had  come  and  Mr.  Short  was  waiting. 

"  And  my  letter  isn't  finished  ! "  exclaimed 
Lulu  in  dismay. 

"  No  matter,  daughter,  it  is  not  one  requiring 
special  haste,  and  you  can  finish  it  at  your 
leisui-e,  to-night  or  to-morrow  ;  no,  on  Monday, 
to-morrow  is  Sunday,"  the  captain  said.  "  Lay 
it  in  your  writing-desk  and  put  on  your  hat. 
We  will  not  keep  Mr.  Short  waiting  any  longer 
than  necessary." 

She  obeyed  with  cheerful  alacrity,  wondering 
aloud  the  while  what  her  new  pony  would  be 
like. 

"  Better  tie  that  hat  on  tight,  Lu,"  Max  said, 
in  sportive  tone  ;  "  he  may  rear  and  make  it  fall 
off,  if  he  doesn't  throw  you." 

"  I'll  fasten  it  as  tight  as  I  can,"  she  said. 
"  Oh,  I  wish  I  had  Gracie  or  somebody  to  tie  my 
veil  for  me  ! " 

"  You  have  two  somebodies ;  isn't  that 
enough  ?  "  asked  her  father,  stepping  up  behind 
her  where  she  stood  in  front  of  the  mirror,  and 
tying  it  for  her  as  deftly  as  if  he  had  been  a 
woman.  "You  will  always  find  your  father, 
and  doubtless  your  brother  also,  ready  to  per 
form  any  such  little  service  for  you.  As  fof 


174          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

the  danger  of  your  pony  throwing  you,  I  think 
you  may  dismiss  any  such  fear.  Mr.  Short  told 
me  he  had  secured  a  safe  one  for  you." 

"  Oh,  I'm  glad  of  that,  papa  !  I  thought  you 
wouldn't  let  me  try  a  dangerous  one.  And 
thank  you  for  tying  my  veil.  I'm  quite  ready 
now,"  drawing  on  her  gloves  as  she  spoke. 

" Well, captain, what  do  you  think  of  them?" 
Mr.  Short  asked,  with  a  look  and  tone  that 
spoke  confidence  of  a  favorable  judgment. 

The  captain  and  his  children  stood  on  the 
sidewalk  in  front  of  the  hoarding-house,  ready 
to  mount  the  steeds  the  agent  had  provided. 

"  They  are  far  better  in  appearance,  at  least, 
than  I  had  expected  to  see,"  replied  Captain 
Raymond  pleasantly.  "  That  horse  is  a  Spanish 
Mexican,  is  it  not  ?  " 

u  Yes,  sir  ;  and  what  I  call  a  grand  piece  of 
horseflesh  for  such  work  as  you  are  likely  to 
put  them  to.  He'll  stand  a  longer,  harder 
gallop  than  any  other  horse  I  ever  rode. 

"  And  those  Indian  ponies  for  the  use  of  the 
young  folks  are  hardy,  strong,  and  well  broken, 
and  though  not  the  handsomest  steeds  that  ever 
were  seen,  will,  I  think,  give  good  satisfaction 
to  their  riders." 

"  I  presume  they  will,"  the  captain  said,  lift 
ing  Lulu  to  her  saddle  and  putting  the  bridle 
into  her  hands,  while  Max  mounted  his  pony 
without  assistance. 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          175 

"  You'll  ride  beside  me,  wont  you,  papa  ?  n  she 
asked,  her  tone  expressing  some  slight  timidity. 

"  Yes,  dear  child  :  so  near  that  I  can  seize 
your  pony's  bridle  at  any  moment,"  he  replied. 
"  But  I  think  you  need  have  no  fear  that  he 
will  misbehave  with  you  on  his  back." 

His  horse  was  close  at  hand,  and  with  the 
concluding  words  of  his  sentence  he  vaulted  into 
the  saddle. 

Away  they  went  through  the  town,  down  the 
valley,  passing  near  the  mine  they  had  visited 
in  the  morning,  over  the  hills  and  far  out  on 
the  grassy  plains  beyond. 

Lulu  found  her  pony  manageable,  so  that 
soon  she  could  partly  forget  him  and  give  her 
attention  to  the  country  they  were  passing 
through,  and  the  talk  of  her  companions. 

She  and  Max  thought  they  would  never  for 
get  that  ride  ;  it  was  so  full  of  pleasure  to 
them  ;  the  air  was  delightfully  fresh  and  pure, 
the  motion  of  their  steeds  rapid  and  easy,  and 
everything  they  saw  was  interesting,  if  only 
because  of  its  dissimilarity  to  whatever  they 
had  heretofore  been  accustomed  to. 

The  principal  topics  of  discourse  between  the 
two  gentlemen  were  the  natural  resources  of 
the  territory  and  their  development,  the  incom 
ing  tide  of  immigration,  its  character  and  prob 
able  influence  upon  the  future  of  that  region 
of  country. 


178          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"You  have  some  Mormon  citizens?"  the  cap 
tain  said,  half  in  assertion,  half  inquiringly. 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  quite  a  good  many,  though  they 
are  decidedly  in  the  minority.  By  the  way, 
you  Eastern  folks  have  little  idea,  I  take  it,  of 
the  aggressive  character  of  Mormonism,  its 
enmity  to  the  Federal  Government,  and  far- 
reaching  schemes  to  gain  the  balance  of  power 
in,  not  Utah  alone,  but  as  many  more  Territories 
and  States  as  possible.  Believe  me,  the  Union 
has  no  bitterer  foes,  and  none  who  need  to  be 
more  vigilantly  watched  and  guarded  against." 

"  I  believe  you,"  the  captain  returned,  with  a 
look  of  grave  concern  ;  "  and  I  think  too  that 
the  Eastern  people  are  at  least  beginning  to 
awake  to  the  danger.  One  object  I  had  in  view 
in  coming  out  here  was  to  see  for  myself  the 
extent  of  the  evil  and  the  best  remedy  to  be 
applied  ;  also  to  decide  the  important  question 
of  my  own  duty  in  the  matter." 

"  They  are  mostly  an  ignorant  set,"  remarked 
Mr.  Short  ;  "  the  foreign  portion  know  so  little 
about  our  government  that  they  believe  the 
lying  assertions  of  their  hierarchy  that  it  is  the 
worst  and  most  despotic  in  the  world." 

"  Whereas,  it  is  the  very  best  and  freest !  " 
exclaimed  Max  indignantly.  "  Isn't  it,  papa  ?  " 

"  Certainly,  my  boy,"  returned  the  captain, 
smiling  at  the  lad's  heat. 

'Mr.  Short  smiled  too,  and  giving  Max  an  ap- 


ELSIE  AND  TEE  RAYMONDS.          177 

proving  look,  remarked  that  he  liked  nothing 
better  than  to  see  boys  full  of  patriotism. 

"  I  wouldn't  be  my  father's  son  if  I  didn't 
love  my  country,"  said  Max. 

"  Like  father,  like  son,  eh  ?  "  laughed  Short, 
"  "Well,  it  is  very  apt  to  be  the  case." 

"  There's  a  cattle  ranch  I  must  take  you  to 
gee,  Captain,"  pointing  in  a  southwesterly  direc 
tion,  where,  far  in  the  distance,  might  b%  dimly 
discerned  a  dwelling  with  out-buildings,  and 
herds  of  cattle  grazing  near  by.  "  It's  too  far 
for  us  to  go  to-night,  but  some  time  next  week, 
perhaps,  it  may  suit  your  plans  to  ride  out  there, 
and  I  think  you  will  find  it  pay  to  do  so,  as  I 
understand  you  want  to  learn  all  about  this 
region  of  country." 

The  captain  assented  to  the  proposal,  adding 
that  he  thought  it  was  now  time  to  turn  their 
horses'  heads  toward  home. 


CHAPTER  XIL 

TEA  was  not  quite  ready  when  they  arrived 
at  their  boarding-house,  and  they  sat  on  the 
porch  while  waiting  for  it,  Captain  Raymond 
looking  over  the  daily  paper  just  taken  from 
the  mail. 

Sandy  McAlpine  and  a  younger  brother 
named  Hugh  were  sitting  near  by  looking  over 
a  picture-book  together. 

"  Is  your  mother  not  well,  boys  ?  "  asked  the 
captain,  glancing  from  his  paper  to  them.  "  I 
think  I  have  not  seen  her  at  all  to-day." 

"  No,  sir,"  replied  Sandy  ;  "  She's  lying  down 
with  a  headache." 

"She  got  a  letter,"  added  Hugh  ;  "  one  of  those 
letters  that  always  make  her  cry  and  get  a  bad 
headache.  I  wish  they  wouldn't  come,  ever  any 
more." 

"  Hush,  hush,  Hugh ! "  muttered  Sandy, 
frowning  at  his  brother  and  nudging  him  with 
his  elbow.  "  You  know  mother  wouldn't  like 
you  talking  so,  especially  to  a  stranger." 

"  I  haven't  said  anything  wicked,"  returned 
the  little  fellow.  "  May  be  you  like  to  see 
mother  cry  and  have  a  headache,  but  I  don't, 
178 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          1V9 

and  I'd  just  thrash  the  man  that  sends  her  such 
horrid  letters,  if  I  could  ;  and  I  will,  too,  when 
I'm  a  big,  strong  man." 

Captain  Raymond  was  seemingly  quite  occu 
pied  with  his  paper  during  this  little  aside  be 
tween  the  lads,  but  he  heard  every  word,  and 
was  thinking  to  himself,  "  It  is  probably  some 
financial  trouble,  and  I  must  see  what  I  can  do 
for  her  relief  ;  there  are  very  special  promises 
to  widows,  and  as  one  of  the  Lord's  stewards  it 
becomes  me  to  be  ready  to  assist  them  in  dis 
tress." 

Marian  came  to  the  door  at  that  moment  with 
the  announcement  that  tea  was  ready. 

The  Raymonds  at  once  rose  and  obeyed  the 
summons,  the  captain  with  his  newspaper  still  in 
his  hand.  He  laid  it  aside  before  sitting  down 
to  his  meal,  and  forgot  it  on  leaving  the  room 
after  supper. 

He  presently  remembered  it,  however,  and 
went  back  in  search  of  it.  He  found  Mrs. 
McAlpine  there  alone,  in  tears,  and  with  an  open 
leter  in  her  hand.  He  would  have  retreated, 
but  perceived  that  it  was  already  too  late.  She 
was  aware  of  his  presence,  and  opening  her  lips 
to  speak. 

"  Excuse  me,  my  dear  madam,"  he  said.  "  I 
had  no  thought  of  intruding  upon  your  privacy, 
but—" 

"  You    are     entirely     excusable,     sir,"    she 


180          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

answered  gently,  and  with  an  effort  to  recover 
her  composure;  "this  room  is  public  to  you  and 
your  children,  and  you  have  a  perfect  right  to 
enter  it  unceremoniously  when  you  will.  Will 
you  take  a  seat  ?  " 

"  Although  I  merely  stepped  in  to  get  my 
paper,  which  I  carelessly  left  here,  I  shall  accept 
your  invitation  with  pleasure,  dear  madam,  if 
if  you  will  allow  me  the  privilege  of  talking 
with  you  as  a  friend,"  he  said,  in  a  deeply  sym 
pathizing  tone.  "I  can  not  be  blind  to  the  fact 
that  you  are  in  trouble,  and  if  in  any  way  I  can 
assist  you,  it  will  give  me  sincere  pleasure  to 
do  so." 

Then  with  the  greatest  delicacy  he  offered 
financial  assistance,  if  that  were  what  she  stood 
in  need  of. 

"  Sir,  you  are  most  kind,"  she  said,  with 
grateful  emotion,"  but  it  is  not  that;  it  is  some 
thing  far  worse  ; — it  is  that  this  wicked,  rebel 
lious  heart  will  not  submit,  as  it  ought,  to  the 
cross  He — my  blessed  Lord  and  Master — has  laid 
upon  me.  Oh  !  "  clasping  her  hands  togethei% 
while  the  big  tears  streamed  down  over  her 
pale  and  sunken  cheeks,  "  I  fear — I  very  much 
fear — I  hae  loved  the  creature  more  than  the 
Creator,  and  that  this  is  why  this  cross  has  been 
laid  upon  me  ;  this  cross,  so  heavy  that  it  bears 
me  to  the  earth  !  " 

She  sank  sobbing  into  a  chair. 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          181 

He  drew  up  another  and  seated  himself  beside 
her.  "  Dear  madam,"  he  said,  in  moved  tones, 
'* '  we  have  not  a  high-priest  who  cannot  be 
touched  with  the  feeling  of  our  infirmities  ;  but 
was  in  all  points  tempted  like  as  we  are,  yet 
without  sin.  Let  us  therefore  come  boldly  unto 
the  throne  of  grace,  that  we  may  obtain  mercy, 
and  find  grace  to  help  in  time  of  need.' 

"  I  know  not  what  your  trouble  is,  but  sure  I 
am  that  thus  you  may  find  grace,  mercy,  peace, 
and  the  fulfillment  of  the  promise, '  As  thy  days, 
so  shall  thy  strength  be  ! '" 

"  Yes,  yes,  I  know,"  she  sobbed,  covering  her 
face  with  her  hands,  "and  whiles  I'm  willing 
to  bear  whatever  He  sends  ;  but  at  times  the 
cross  seems  heavier  than  mortal  strength  can 
endure,  so  that  it  crushes  me  to  the  very  earth  ! 
O  Willie,  my  Willie,  how  happy  we  were  in 
those  early  years  o'  our  married  life,  when  you 
were  all  the  world  to  me  and  I  was  all  the  world 
to  you  !  but  now — I  can  no  longer  feel  that  you 
are  mine.  Others  hae  come  between  us;  they 
have  stolen  your  love  from  me,  and  my  heart  is 
breaking,  breaking ! 

"  But,  oh,  this  is  sinful,  sinful !  Lord,  help  a 
poor,  frail  worm  of  the  dust  to  be  obedient  and 
submissive  to  Thy  will !  "  She  seemed  to  have 
forgotten  the  captain's  presence,  but  light  wa« 
dawning  upon  him. 

"  I  think  you  are  accusing  yourself  unjustly, 


182          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

my  dear  madam,"  he  said,  in  pitying  tones ; 
"  are  mistaking  God-implanted  feelings  for  the 
suggestions  of  the  evil  one." 

"  Alas,  no  !  "  she  sighed.  "  Has  not  God 
given  a  new  revelation  to  his  prophet,  ordaining 
that '  it  is  the  duty  of  every  woman  to  give  other 
wives  to  her  husband,  even  as  Sara  gave  Hagar 
to  Abram,  and  that  if  she  refuses  it  shall  be 
lawful  for  the  husband  to  take  them  without  her 
consent,  and  she  shall  be  destroyed  for  her  dis 
obedience  '  ?  " 

"No,"  returned  the  captain,  and  there  was 
stern  indignation  in  his  tone — not  against  the 
poor,  deluded  woman,  but  toward  her  base 
deceivers — "  a  thousand  times,  no  !  any  pretence 
to  a  new  revelation,  no  matter  by  whom  it  may 
be  set  up,  must  be  a  base  fabrication.  Listen ! — " 

"  Ah,  sir,  you  mean  kindly,"  she  said,  "  but 
I  must  not  listen  to  you,  for  I  perceive — what 
I  had  already  suspected — that  you  are  not  one 
of  the  saints;  that  you  do  not  believe  the  teach 
ings  of  the  new  gospel." 

"  New  gospel !  "  he  exclaimed,  his  eyes  kindl 
ing.  "  Tell  me,  Mrs.  McAlpine,  were  you  not 
brought  up  to  believe  the  Bible  ?  "  taking  out  a 
pocket  edition  constantly  carried  with  him,  as 
he  spoke. 

"  Surely,  sir,  and  I  may  say  with  the  Psalm 
ist,  'Unless  thy  law  had  been  my  delights,  I 
should  then  have  perished  in  mine  affliction.' * 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          183 

He  opened  his  Bible,  and  turning  to  the  first 
chapter  of  Galatians,  read  aloud  :  "  I  marvel  that 
ye  are  so  soon  removed  from  him  that  called 
you  into  the  grace  of  Christ,  unto  another  gos 
pel  ;  which  is  not  another  ;  but  there  be  some 
that  trouble  you  and  would  pervert  the  gospel 
of  Christ. 

"  But  though  we,  or  an  angel  from  heaven, 
preach  any  other  gospel  unto  you  than  that 
which  we  have  preached  unto  you,  let  him  be 
accursed.  As  we  said  before,  so  say  I  now 
again,  If  any  man  preach  any  other  gospel 
unto  you  than  that  ye  have  received,  let  him  be 
accursed." 

"  Could  anything  be  plainer  or  stronger  than 
that?"  he  asked,  with  emphasis. 

"  No,"  she  said  slowly,  looking  like  one  waking 
from  a  dream.  "  Why  have  I  not  remembered 
those  words  before  ?  But — there  has  been  a 
new  revelation  ;  at  least,  they  told  me  so." 

"  A  new  revelation!'.'  he  repeated,  in  a  tone  of 
titter  incredulity.  "  Listen  again  to  God's  own 
word,  inspired  and  written  many  hundreds  of 
year  before  the  birth  of  your  so-called  prophets, 
('  false  prophets,  dreamers  of  dreams,  who  have 
spoken  to  turn  you  away  from  the  Lord  your 
God  ...  to  thrust  thee  out  of  the  way  which  the 
Lord  thy  God  commanded  thee  to  walk  in)." 

Opening  to  the  very  last  page  of  the  New 
Testament  he  re*ad  again  :  "I  testify  unto  every 


184          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

man  that  heareth  the  words  of  the  prophecy  of 
this  book,  If  any  man  shall  add  unto  these 
things,  God  shall  add  unto  him  the  plagues 
that  are  written  in  this  book  ;  and  if  any  man 
shall  take  away  from  the  words  of  the  book 
of  this  prophecy,  God  shall  take  away  his  part 
out  of  the  book  of  life,  and  out  of  the  holy 
city,  and  from  the  things  which  are  written  in 
this  book." 

She  gazed  at  him  for  an  instant  in  awestruck 
silence,  then  rousing  herself,  said  slowly,  "  But 
they  say  there  are  corruptions,  mis-translations." 
She  paused,  leaving  her  sentence  unfinished. 

"There  is  no  lack  of  proof  that  the  Scriptures 
are  the  revealed  word  of  God,  that  the  writers 
were  inspired  by  God,  and  that  if  any  corrup 
tions  or  mistranslations  have  crept  in  they  are 
10  few  and  slight  as  to  be  of  little  account, 
making  small  difference  in  the  meaning,"  he 
said.  "  The  proofs  of  the  authenticity  and  in 
spiration  of  the  Scriptures  are  so  many  that  it 
would  take  a  long  time  to  state  them  all." 

"  There  is  no  need  in  my  case,  sir,"  she  inter 
rupted.  "I  know  they  are  divine  ;  the  internal 
evidence  alone  would  be  all-sufficient  to  me." 

"  And  yet  their  teachings  are  directly  opposed 
to  those  of  Mormonism." 

"  Not  against  polygamy,  surely  ?  God  knows 
I  would  be  glad  to  think  BO  ;  but  how  many  of 
fche  prominent  characters  of  the  Old  Testament 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          185 

nad  a  plurality  of  wives.  Even  David,  'the 
man  after  God's  own  heart,'  had  many  more 
than  one." 

"  But  the  Bible  nowhere  tells  us  that  God  ap 
proved  of  the  practice  ;  and  how  often  the  his 
tory  it  gives  shows  that  polygamy  brought  sin 
and  misery  on  those  who  practised  it.  God 
made  but  one  wife  for  Adam." 

"  But  Sarai  gave  Hagar  to  Abram." 

"  But  God  did  not  command  it,  nor  are  we 
anywhere  told  that  he  approved  it.  It  was  a 
sinful  deed  done  in  unbelief,  and  brought  forth 
the  bitter  fruits  of  sin." 

For  a  moment  or  more  she  sat  silent,  evidently 
in  deep  thought.  Then  she  spoke  : 

"  I  believe  you  are  right,  sir ;  though  it  has 
not  struck  me  in  that  way  before.  It  did 
bring  '  forth  the  bitter  fruits  of  sin,'  very  much 
the  same  fruits  that  polygamy  brings  forth  here 
and  in  this  day,"  she  concluded  with  a  heavy 
sigh. 

Captain  Raymond  was  again  turning  over 
the  leaves  of  his  Bible.  "  Listen  to  the  words  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,"  he  said. 

"  Have  ye  not  read,  that  he  who  made  them 
at  the  beginning  made  them  male  and  female, 
and  said,  '  For  this  cause  shall  a  man  leave 
father  and  mother,  and  shall  cleave  to  his  wife ; 
and  they  twain  shall  be  one  flesh  !  Wherefore 
they  are  no  more  twain,  but  one  flesh." 


"86          tSLSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  That  passage  is  from  Matthew,  and  Mark 
also  gives  these  words  of  the  Master,"  the  cap 
tain  said.  "And  have  you  not  noticed  how 
Paul  in  his  epistles  always  seems  to  take  it  for 
granted,  when  speaking  of  the  marriage  tie, 
that  a  man  can  lawfully  have  but  one  wife  at  a 
time? 

" '  For  the  husband  is  the  head  of  the  wife' 
(not  wives). 

" '  He  that  loveth  his  wife  loveth  himself,' .  .  . 
'  Let  every  one  of  you  in  particular  so  love  his 
wife  even  as  himself.* 

" '  A  bishop  then  must  be  blameless,  the 
husband  of  one  wife.' 

"  But  Mormonism  teaches  that  bishops  may 
have,  and  ought  to  have,  many  wives.  Poly 
gamy  is  encouraged  on  the  ground  that  the  rank 
and  dignity  of  its  members  is  in  proportion  to 
the  number  of  their  wives  and  children.  Is  not 
that  the  fact  ?  " 

"Yes,"  she  answered  Avith  a  heavy  sigh,  "  it 
is  according  to  the  revelation  made  to  Bishop 
Young." 

"  A  revelation  indeed  !  though,  as  we  have 
seen,  the  record  was  closed  in  the  time  of  the 
Apostle  John,  and  a  fearful  curse  pronounced 
on  any  who  should  add  to  it.  A  revelation 
opposed  to  all  the  teachings  of  God's  word  on 
that  subject.  It  came  from  the  father  of  lies, 
for  God  never  contradicts  himself ;  all  the 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.         187 

teachings  of  every  part  of  his  word  are  con 
sistent  with  each  other,  which  is  one  of  the 
proofs  of  the  divine  inspiration  of  the  Scrip 
tures. 

"  From  Genesis  to  Revelation  the  teaching, 
both  direct  and  implied,  is  that  God  made  of 
twain  one  flesh,  and  a  man  may  have  but  one 
wife.  Adam  had  but  one,  and  in  the  book  of 
Revelation  John  tells  us  the  angel  said  to  him^ 
*  Come  hither,  and  I  will  show  thee  the  bride, 
the  Lamb's  wife,' — not  wives,  you  will  observe ; 
there  was  but  one." 

"You  shake  my  faith  in  Mormonism,"  she 
said,  with  a  startled,  troubled  look. 

"  I  rejoice  to  hear  it,"  he  responded  ;  "  would 
that  I  could  shake  it  to  its  utter  destruction. 

"Popery  has  been  well  called  'Satan't 
masterpiece,'  and  Mormonism  is  another  by  th« 
same  hand ;  the  points  of  resemblance  ar» 
sufficient  to  prove  that  to  my  mind." 

"  Points  of  resemblance  ? "  she  repeated, 
inquiringly,  "  I  have  never  thought  there  were 
any,  and  I  have  a  heart  hatred  to  Popery,  as 
you  may  well  suppose,  coming,  as  I  do,  from  & 
land  where  she  slew,  in  former  ages,  so  many 
of  God's  saints.  But  surely  in  one  thing  the 
two  are  very  different — the  one  forbidding  to 
marry,  the  other  encouraging  men  to  take 
many  wives." 

"  The  difference  in  regard  to  that  is  not  M 


183          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

great  as  may  appear  at  first  sight,"  he  returned  ; 
"both  pander  to  men's  lusts — for  what  are 
nunneries  but  'priests'  prisons  for  women,'  as 
one  who  left  the  ranks  of  the  Popish  priesthood 
has  called  them  ? 

"  Both  teach  children  to  forsake  their  parents  ; 
both  teach  lying  and  murder,  when  by  such 
crimes  they  are  expected  to  advance  the  cause 
of  their  church." 

"  Oh,  sir,  so  bad  as  that  ?  "  she  exclaimed,  with 
a  shudder. 

"It  is  computed  that  Popery  has  slain  fifty 
millions  of  those  she  calls  heretics,  and  often 
times  she  has  secured  her  victims  by  the  basest 
treachery.  All  that  in  past  ages,  to  be  sure, 
but  she  claims  infallibility  and  denies  that  she 
has  ever  done  wrong  ;  besides,  to  this  day  she 
shows  the  same  persecuting  spirit,  and  actually 
kills,  too,  wherever  she  has  the  power. 

"  As  to  Mormonism  doing  likewise,  look  at  the 
Mountain  Meadow  massacre,  the  lying  and  per 
jury  to  prevent  convictions  for  polygamy,  and 
the  private  assassinations  committed  to  carry 
out  their  fearful  and  wicked  doctrine  of  blood 
atonement. 

"  In  that  doctrine  also — asserting  that  the  blood 
of  Christ  does  not  cleanse  from  all  sin  those  who 
accept  his  offered  salvation — they  agree  with 
the  Church  of  Rome,  whose  teaching  is  that  for 
giveness  of  sins  and  final  salvation  are  to  be  ob- 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          189 

tained  by  penance  and  good  works  supplement 
ing  the  finished  work  of  Christ ;  that  good 
works  are  to  be  done  not — as  the  Bible  teaches — 
because  we  are  saved,  but  in  order  to  earn  sal 
vation  ;  thus  flatly  contradicting  God's  word, 
which  says  : 

"'A  man  is  justified  by  faith  without  the 
deeds  of  the  law.' 

"  *  By  grace  are  ye  saved,  through"  faith  ;  and 
that  not  of  yourselves  ;  it  is  the  gift  of  God.' 

"  '  The  blood  of  Jesus  Ch:  1st  His  Son  cleans- 
eth  us  from  all  sin.'  " 

Again  he  opened  his  Bible  '.nd  read  :  "  *  Ye 
are  of  your  father  the  devil,  and  the  lusts  of 
your  father  ye  will  do  :  he  was  a  murderer  from 
the  beginning,  and  abode  not  in  the  truth,  be 
cause  there  is  no  truth  in  him  ;  when  he  speak- 
eth  a  lie,  he  speaketh  of  his  own  ;  for  he  is  a 
liar  and  the  father  of  it.' 

"  '  He  that  is  of  God  heareth  God's  words  ; 
ye  therefore  hear  them  not,  because  ye  are  not 
of  God.' 

"  Are  not  those  words  of  the  Master  pecu 
liarly  applicable  to  all  those  teaching  doctrines 
so  diametrically  opposed  to  his  ?  "  he  asked. 

"They  certainly  are  applicable  to  any  who 
teach  false  doctrine,"  she  replied. 

K  And  can  you  call  the  Mormon  doctrine  of 
'blood  atonement,'  by  any  softer  name  ?" 

"  No.  for  I  believe  God's  word,  '  the  blood  of 


190         ELSIE  AND  TEE  RAYMONDS. 

Jesus  Christ  his  Son  cleanseth  us  from  all  sip ' ; 
and  its  teaching  that  he  is  the  one  sacrifice  for 
Bin." 

"  And  yet  you  call  yourself  one  of  them  ?  " 

"  I  have  done  so.  I  stood  out  against  it  for 
a  time — in  the  old  home  in  Scotland — but  the 
man — a  Mormon  missionary — was  very  plausi 
ble  and  seemed  very  devout,  quoted  Scripture, 
won  Willie,  my  husband,  over  first,  and  they 
both  kept  at  me  till  I  grew  fairly  bewildered 
and  half  crazed,  and  at  last,  when  Willie  told 
me  he  was  bound  to  come  over  to  America  and 
join  the  Latter-day  Saints,  I  gave  up  and  agreed 
to  do  the  same  ;  for  how  could  I  part  from  him  ? 
and  no  word  at  all  had  been  breathed  to  either 
of  us  about  polygamy  ;  we  had  not  thought  it 
was  one  of  their  doctrines." 

A  spasm  of  pain  convulsed  her  features,  and 
for  a  moment  she  seemed  unable  to  go  on. 

"  Does  that  speak  well  for  their  honesty  ? n 
he  asked,  in  stern  indignation. 

She  shook  her  head.  "  No,"  she  said  chok 
ingly  ;  "  and  the  thought  of  that  has  sometimes 
made  me  grow  weak  in  the  faith  till  my  heart 
would  almost  stand  still  with  fright." 

The  last  words  were  spoken  in  a  suppressed 
tone,  little  louder  than  a  whisper,  and  with  a 
half-terrified  glance  from  side  to  side,  as  if  she 
feared  they  might  be  overheard. 

"  And  no  wonder,  considering  their  fiendish 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          191 

practice  of  *  blood  atonement,'  he  responded, 
regarding  the  poor,  trembling  woman  with  deep 
commiseration.  "  I  presume  you  had  not  been 
long  a  dweller  in  Mormon dom  before  you  were 
more  fully  instructed  in  regard  to  those  two 
important  doctrines  ?  " 

"  No,  sir,  not  long,"  she  replied,  "  as  to  poly 
gamy  at  least  ;  and  when  my  husband  declared 
his  intention  of  carrying  that  into  practice,  I 
was  heart-broken  and  entreated  him  to  forbear, 
remembering  his  solemn  marriage  vow  to  cleave 
to  me  only  so  long  as  we  both  should  live. 

"  He  tried  argument  with  me  at  first,  coaxing 
and  persuasion,  but  finding  I  was  not  to  be 
moved  by  those,  he  grew  very  angry  and  abu 
sive,  and  hinted  darkly  at  the  danger  of  the 
blood  atonement  doctrine  being  carried  out  in 
my  case  if  I  continued  obstinate  in  refusing  my 
consent." 

"  And  so  you  gave  it  ?  " 

"  Yes.  Oh,  sir,  it  was  like  consenting  to  have 
my  heart  torn  from  my  bosom  !  "  she  exclaimed 
in  a  low  tone  tremulous  with  pain.  "  But  to 
withhold  it  would  do  no  good,  and  would  en 
danger  my  life — my  life,  no  longer  valuable  save 
for  the  sake  of  my  dear  children  :  but  for  their 
sake  I  did  desire  to  live.  Ah,  sir,  I  could  not 
but  ask  myself,  '  Is  this  what  it  is  to  live  in  free 
America  ? ' ' 

"  I  blush  for  my  country,  in  view  of  the  out* 


J92          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

rages  she  has  allowed  in  the  name  of  religion  !  w 
he  exclaimed,  his  fine,  manly  countenance  flush 
ing  with  shame  and  indignation  as  he  spoke. 
"  And  yet,"  he  continued  interrogatively,  "  you 
came  to  believe  it  right  for  a  man  thus  to  break 
his  marriage  vow  ?  " 

"I  grew  bewildered  with  misery,"  she  said. 
"  I  had  no  choice  but  to  submit,  and  felt  that  I 
should  go  mad  with  the  thought  of  my  hus 
band's  wickedness  if  I  held  fast  to  the  teach 
ings  of  my  childhood.  I  could  not  answer  their 
arguments  (ah,  I  see  now  that  more  prayer  and 
searching  of  the  Scriptures  might  have  enabled 
me  to  do  so  ;  yet  the  result  would  have  been  a 
violent  death  ;  probably  by  Willie's  own  hand, 
making  him  a  murderer  as  well  as — a  breaker  of 
the  seventh  commandment),  so  I  resigned  my 
self  to  my  fate — so  far  as  I  could — and  have 
ever  since  been  fighting  with  the  anguish  and 
rebellion  in  my  broken  heart." 

She  was  silent  for  a  moment,  struggling  with 
her  emotion,  then  with  a  grateful  look  at  him, 
"  I  don't  know  how  it  is,  sir,  that  you  have  so 
quickly  won  my  confidence,"  she  said.  "  I  have 
never  before  breathed  a  word  of  all  this  into 
any  mortal  ear.  Even  Marian  knows  no  more 
than  that  I  suffer  because — other  women  share 
the  affection  that  in  former,  happier  days  was 
all  my  own." 

"It  is  sometimes  a  relief  to  unburden  our 


ELSIE  AND   TIIE  RAYMONDS.          193 

hearts  to  a  fellow-creature,"  he  replied  ;  "  there 
is  healing  and  comfort  in  human  sympathy,  and 
I  assure  you,  dear  madam,  that  you  have  mine 
in  no  slight  measure.  The  man  who  can  so 
wound  the  heart  of  a  loving  wife  must  be  worse 
than  a  brute. 

"  But  the  government  has  at  last  come  to  the 
rescue  of  these  oppressed  wives.  I  trust  the 
Edmunds  Bill  will  prove  the  complete  destruc 
tion  of  polygamy,  and  efface  this  bar  sinister 
from  my  country's  scutcheon." 

"  I  cannot  but  desire  it,  if  only  for  my 
daughter's  sake,"  she  returned.  "  Marian  will 
soon  be  a  woman,  and,  if  your  government  does 
not  help,  may  be  forced  into  a  polygamous  mar 
riage.  She  would  never  go  into  it  of  her  own 
free  will ;  she  is  no  Mormon,  but,  young  as  she 
is,  has  always  declared  intense  hatred  and  ab 
horrence  of  both  polygamy  and  the  blood  atone 
ment  doctrine — and  practice,"  she  added,  after  a 
moment's  hesitation. 

"Oh,  sir,  no  small  part  of  my  suffering  is 
occasioned  by  the  change  in  my  child's  feelings 
toward  her  father  ;  from  loving  him  with  an 
ardent  affection,  she  has  turned  to  hating  him 
with  a  bitter  hatred,  as  the  destroyer  of  her 
mother's  peace  and  happiness." 

She  ended  with  a  burst  of  uncontrollable 
weeping. 

Cautain    Raymond's    kind    heart  was  sorely 


194         ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

pained  by  the  sight  of  her  distress.  He  felt 
himself  powerless  to  give  relief,  but  spoke 
gently  to  her  of  the  love  and  sympathy  of 
Jesus,  the  "  Friend  that  sticketh  closer  than  a 
brother,"  and  to  whom  "  all  power  is  given  in 
heaven  and  in  earth." 

"  Carry  all  your  griefs,  your  fears,  and  anxie 
ties  to  Him,"  he  said.  "  There  is  no  trouble  too 
great  for  his  power  to  remove,  too  small  for  his 
loving  attention.  His  love  to  his  people  is  in 
finite,  and  he  never  regards  their  sorrows  with 
indifference. 

"In  all  their  afflictions  he  was  afflicted,  and 
the  Angel  of  his  presence  saved  them." 

"  It  is  true,"  she  said  tremulously ;  "  I  have 
found  it  true  in  my  own  experience.  *  In  hie 
love  and  in  his  pity  he  redeemed  them  ;  and  he 
bare  them,  and  carried  them  all  the  days  of  old.' 
And  so  he  has  done  with  me — his  most  un 
worthy  and  doubting  servant.  Ah,  sir,  you,  I 
am  sure,  are  one  of  God's  own  people,  whatever 
may  be  your  views  with  regard  to  the  Mormon 
creed,  and  I  beseech  you  to  pray  for  me  that  my 
faith  in  God,  in  Jesus,  and  his  gospel  may  be 
strengthened  and  increased." 


CHAPTER 

ON  leaving  the  tea-table  Max  and  Lulu  had 
seated  themselves  in  the  porch,  along  with  their 
father,  and  just  as  he  went  in  search  of  his  paper 
they  were  joined  by  Albert  Austin. 

"  Ah,  good-evening,  Albert,"  said  Max,  mak 
ing  haste  to  place  a  chair  for  him  near  his  own, 
"  I'm  pleased  to  see  you." 

"  Thanks  ;  I'm  pleased  to  come,"  returned 
the  English  lad,  accepting  the  offered  seat.  "  I 
was  bored  with  listening  to  papa  and  some 
other  gentlemen  talking  on  some  subject  that 
didn't  interest  me  in  the  least,  so  I  slipped  away 
after  telling  papa  where  I  could  be  found  when 
wanted." 

"  He  doesn't  object  to  our  society  then  ?  n 
remarked  Max,  in  a  playfully  interrogative 
tone. 

"  No,  indeed  !  I  fancy  he  thinks  I  could  hard 
ly  be  in  better  company.  He's  taken  a  strong 
liking  to  your  father,  and  I  think  I  may  add  to 
yourselves,  also,"  glancing  admiringly  at  Lulu 
as  he  spoke. 

"  In  spite  of  my  not  being  an  English  girl  ?  * 
she  returned  laughingly. 
105 


196          ELSIE  AND  TEE  RAYMONDS. 

"  Oh,  assuredly,  Miss  Lulu  !  That  could  make 
no  difference  ;  in  fact,  I  believe  Englishmen  are, 
as  a  class,  great  admirers  of  American  ladies." 

"In  which  they  show  their  good  taste," 
laughed  Max.  "  My  father  says  American  ladies 
compare  favorably  with  those  of  any  other 
nation.  I  wish  you  could  see  Mamma  Vi  and 
Grandma  Elsie." 

"  Who  are  they  ?  "  asked  Albert,  with  a  puz 
zled  look. 

"Mamma  Vi  is  papa's  wife;  his  second  wife, 
while  we  are  the  children  of  the  first.  Her 
Dame  is  Violet  ;  she  isn't  old  enough  to  be  our 
real  mother,  so  she  told  us  to  call  her  Mamma 
Vi.  Grandma  Elsie  is  her  mother,  and  we  call 
her  that  to  distinguish  her  from  an  older  lady 
whom  we  call  grandma  also." 

"  Ah,  yes,  I  think  I  understand.  That's  one 
of  your  American  ways,  I  suppose.  And  where 
are  those  ladies  you  would  like  to  show  me  ? 
not  in  this  state,  I  fancy,  as  I  remember  seeing 
you  on  the  cars  long  before  we  entered  it." 

"  Yes,"  replied  Max,  with  an  amused  look, 
*'  our  home  is  so  far  away  that  we  crossed 
several  states  in  coming  here.  But  this  is  not 
a  state." 

"  Isn't  ?     What  then  ?  " 

"  A  territory." 

"Ah,  excuse  me,  but  I  don't  know  the  dif* 
ference." 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          197 

"  I'll  try  to  explain,"  said  Max.  "  Papa  has 
taken  some  pains  to  give  us  a  clear  understand 
ing  of  our  government  and  its  workings. 

"  Each  of  the  thirty-eight  states  has  its  own 
constitution,  elects  its  own  governor,  legislators, 
and  judges.  It  elects  two  senators  to  send 
to  Congress,  too,  and  from  one  to  thirty-four 
representatives,  according  to  its  population. 

"  But  the  territories  can  send  only  one  delegate 
to  Congress,  and  he  has  no  vote ;  they  are 
governed  by  Congress,  with  a  governor  ap 
pointed  by  the  president." 

"  Ah,  yes,  I  see  the  difference,  and  that  the 
states  have  the  best  of  it.  The  territories,  I 
presume,  look  forward  to  becoming  states  ?  " 

"Yes;  but  they  must  have  a  certain  number 
of  inhabitants  before  they  can  hope  to  be  admit 
ted  into  the  Union  ?  " 

"  Your  father's  an  army  officer,  isn't  he  ?  " 

"  No  ;  he  belonged  to  the  navy,  but  resigned 
ncft  very  long  ago." 

"  The  American  navy  is  quite  small,  isn't 
it?" 

"  It  isn't  so  large  as  it  ought  to  be,"  returned 
Max  shortly. 

"  Britannia  rules  the  wave  !  "  quoted  Albert, 
in  an  exultant  tone. 

"  Yes  ;  when  Columbia  isn't  there  to  inter 
fere  with  her,"  retorted  Max,  a  little  mischiev* 
ously. 


198          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  I'm  thinking  'twill  be  a  sorry  day  for  Colom 
bia  when  she  attempts  that,"  sneered  Albert. 

"  It  hasn't  always  been  in  the  past,"  remarked 
Max  quietly. 

"  When  wasn't  it  ?  "  asked  Albert. 

"  When  John  Paul  Jones  in  the  Bon  Homme 
Richard  fought  Capt.  Pearson  in  the  Serapis, 
for  instance." 

"  Well,  yes  ;  but  that  was  a  very  close  fight. 
Beside,  you  had  six  vessels  and  we  only  two." 

"  Two  of  ours  were  pilot  boats  and  kept  out 
of  the  fight  altogether,"  said  Max. 

"  So  did  the  Vengeance  ;  though  she  had  been 
ordered  to  render  the  larger  vessels  any  assist 
ance  in  her  power  ;  she  didn't  even  try  to  over 
haul  the  band  of  flying  merchantmen. 

"  Then  the  Alliance,  commanded  by  that  bad- 
tempered  Frenchman  Landais,  who  was  so  en 
vious  of  Jones,  went  into  the  battle  only  at  the 
last  moment,  and  instead  of  helping  her  allies, 
fired  her  broadsides  into  the  Richard.  The  fight 
was  between  the  Richard,  with  forty  guns,  and 
the  Serapis  with  forty-four  ;  the  Pallas,  twenty- 
two  guns,  and  the  Countess  of  Scarborough, 
with  twenty-two.  So  there  was  no  advantage 
on  our  side.  If  Landais  had  been  in  command 
of  the  Richard  he  wouldn't  have  tried  to  fight 
the  Serapis  at  all." 

"  Why  do  you  think  that  ?  " 

"  Because,  as  he  dashed  past  her  in  the  Alii- 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          199 

ance,  pushing  ahead  to  reconnoitre,  "before  the 
fight  began,  he  cried  out  that  if  the  enemy 
proved  to  be  a  forty-four,  the  only  course  for 
the  Americans  was  immediate  flight.  He  prac 
ticed  on  that  idea,  too,  hauling  off  and  leaving 
the  Richard  and  the  Pallas  to  do  the  fighting. 

"  Our  French  allies  did  us  more  harm  than 
good  in  the  naval  battles  of  the  Revolutionary 
War.  If  Captain  Landais  wasn't  crazy,  he 
must  have  been  one  of  the  greatest  scoundrels 
that  ever  trod  a  quarter-deck." 

"  Yes,  indeed,"  said  Lulu,  "when  I  read  about 
his  firing  into  the  Bon  Homme  Richard — when 
the  poor  fellows  on  it  had  been  fighting  so  hard 
and  long,  so  many  of  them  dreadfully  wounded, 
and  the  ship  almost  sinking  already — I  felt  as 
if  I  could  hardly  stand  it  to  think  he  escaped 
being  well  punished  for  it.  He  ought  to  have 
been  hung  ;  for  his  fire  killed  some  of  our  poor 
fellows." 

"  So  he  ought,  the  miserable  coward  !  "  as 
sented  the  English  lad.  "  I'm  not  partial  to  the 
French  anyway,"  he  added.  "  Of  course  my 
own  countrymen  come  first  in  my  estimation, 
but  I  put  the  Americans  next.  We're  a  sort  of 
cousins,  you  know." 

"  Yes,"  said  Max.  "  But  wasn't  it  a  crazy 
idea  that  this  great  big  country  should  go  on 
being  ruled  by  that  little  one  across  the  sea  f 
Most  absurd,  I  think." 


800          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"At  the  beginning  of  the  trouble  between 
them  it  must  have  looked  like  great  folly  for 
the  thirteen  weak  colonies  to  go  into  the  fight 
with  England,"  remarked  Albert. 

"  Particularly  to  the  English,  who  didn't  know 
how  in  love  with  liberty,  and  determined  to 
keep  her,  the  Americans  were,"  said  Max. 
"  Papa  says  we  triumphed  at  the  last  because 
our  cause  was  the  cause  of  right,  and  God 
guided  our  counsels  and  gave  success  to  our 
arms." 

"  I  don't  believe  I'm  as  well-read  on  the  sub 
ject  as  you  are,"  remarked  Albert.  "  I  presume 
I  would  naturally  take  less  interest  in  it  than 
you  would." 

"  Yes,  I  suppose  so,"  replied  Max.  "  I've 
studied  the  history  of  the  United  States,  my 
native  land,  a  great  deal,  especially  in  the  last 
year  or  two,  and  have  had  many  talks  with 
papa  about  the  events,  and  especially  the  doings 
of  the  navy  ;  they  interested  me  more  than  any 
other  part ;  first,  because  papa  was  a  naval 
«£fecy?sr,  and  then  because  I'm  hoping  to  go  into 
tlie  navy  myself." 

w  And  those  studies  didn't  increase  your  love 
for  us — the  English,  I  mean  ?  "  said  Albert  in 
terrogatively. 

"  No,  not  a  bit,"  returned  Max  with  a  sl'ght 
laugh.  Us  paused  a  moment,  then  *7ent  on 
more  gravely. 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          201 

"The  treatment  they  gave  the  Americans 
they  took  prisoners,  was  simply  barbarous ; 
unworthy  of  a  civilized — not  to  say  Christian — 
nation." 

"  Yes,  perfectly  dreadful ! "    chimed  in  Lulu. 

"  Now  I  really  don't  remember  any  such 
barbarity,"  remarked  Albert,  rather  apologeti 
cally.  "  But  you  know  the  Americans  were 
considered  rebels,  and  I — suppose  the  British 
officers  may  have  thought  it  a  duty  to — refrain 
from  coddling  them." 

"  Coddling  indeed  !  "  exclaimed  Max.  "  Do 
you  remember  about  the  '  Old  Jersey '  prison- 
ship  ?  " 

"  Can't  say  that  I  do." 

"  It  was  a  dismasted  hulk — an  old  sixty-four 
gun-ship  moored  in  Wallabout  Bay,  near  New 
York  City.  She  was  so  old  and  worn-out  and 
rotten  that  she  wasn't  fit  to  go  to  sea  ;  so  they 
used  her  as  a  prison  for  Americans  whom  they 
captured,  and  starved  them  and  treated  them  so 
horribly  in  every  way,  that  eleven  thousand 
died  in  her." 

"  Wouldn't  it  be  charitable  to  suppose  the 
starving  may  have  been  because  of  an  unavoid 
able  scarcity  of  provisions?"  queried  Albert 
mildly. 

"There  was  no  such  unavoidable  scarcity," 
asserted  Max,  "  yet  the  poor  prisoners  were 
sometimes  so  hungry  as  to  be  glad  to  eat 


202          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

cockroaches  and  mice  when  they  could  catch 
them." 

"  On  that  vessel  ?  "  asked  Albert. 

"  I  think  it  was  on  that  very  vessel,"  said 
Max  musingly  ;  "  but  possibly  I  might  be  mis 
taken  ;  there  were  other  prison-ships,  but  the 
Old  Jersey  was  the  worst.  But  I'm  certain  it 
was  American  prisoners  in  the  hands  of  the 
British  near  New  York.  A  piece  of  wanton 
cruelty  the  jailors  were  guilty  of,  was  bringing 
in  a  kettle  of  boiling  soup,  or  mush,  and  setting 
it  down  before  those  starving  prisoners  of  war, 
with  never  a  spoon  or  anything  to  dip  it  up  with." 

"  Yes,"  said  Lulu,  "  and  another  time  they 
marched  some  prisoners  for  four  days  without  a 
mouthful  to  eat,  then  rolled  out  barrels  of  salt 
pork  for  them  to  eat  raw.  And  another  time, 
when  they  were  exchanging  prisoners  with  the 
Americans,  they  put  pounded  glass  into  the  last 
meal's  victuals  they  gave  to  the  American  sol 
diers  before  they  let  them  go." 

"  Well,  if  they  did  that  'twas  mean  and 
wicked  enough,"  admitted  Albert.  "  But  don't 
you  think  the  world  has  grown  a  little  better 
since  those  days,  and  that  then  other  nations 
were  quite  as  cruel,  if  not  more  so?  always 
excepting  the  Americans,  of  course,"  he  added, 
with  a  mischievous  twinkle  in  his  eye. 

"  I  believe  that's  so,"  admitted  Max. 

"And    some    Americans — the    Tories — were 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          203 

•worse  than  the  British,"  said  Lulu  ;  "some  of 
their  deeds  were  perfectly  dreadful,  shockingly- 
wicked  and  cruel !  beside,  it  was  so  contempti 
ble  in  them  to  turn  against  their  own  country 
and  ill-use — even  to  robbing  and  murdering — 
their  own  countrymen." 

"  Well,  yes,"  said  Albert,  "but  then,  we  must 
remember  that  the  way  they  looked  at  it  'twas 
only  being  loyal  to  their  king." 

"  The  English  king,  you  mean,"  she  retorted. 
"  But  most  of  them — the  Tories — were  low,, 
mean,  wicked  fellows  that  really  cared  for 
neither  king  nor  country,  and  were  only  glad  of 
an  excuse  to  rob  wherever  they  could." 

"  Then  please  don't  blame  my  country  with 
what  they  did,"  said  Albert. 

"No  ;  it  isn't  worth  while  ;  she  has  sins 
enough  of  her  own  to  answer  for,"  returned 
Lulu  demurely.  "  And  then  she's  so  little,  poor 
thing  !  " 

Albert  looked  nettled  at  that.  "The  sun 
never  sets  on  the  British  empire,"  he  said, 
straightening  himself  proudly.  "  And,  big  as 
your  country  is,  I  don't  believe  either  her  army 
or  navy  can  compare  with  ours." 

"Yes,  our  regular  army  is  small,  I  know,"  ad 
mitted  Max  ;  "  but  we  have  a  great  army  of 
militia,  and  all  so  devoted  to  their  country  that 
they  make  splendid  fighters  when  called  on  to 
defend  her.  Our  navy's  small,  too,  but  com' 


204 

pares  better  in  size  with  yours  than  it  did  at  the 
beginning  of  the  war  of  1812-14,  and  it  came 
out  of  that  with  flying  colors." 

"  Really,  I  don't  remember  what  was  the  dif 
ference  then,  or  just  what  the  fight  was  about," 
acknowledged  Albert  modestly. 

"  Don't  you  ?  "  asked  Max,  in  some  surprise. 
"  Well,  I  shouldn't  either,  if  papa  hadn't  turned 
my  attention  to  such  subjects  and  talked  with 
with  us  about  them  in  such  an  interesting  way. 
He  says  he  wants  his  children  to  be  well  ac 
quainted  with  history,  especially  that  of  their 
own  country.  That's  how  I  happen  to  be  posted 
on  those  questions. 

"  When  the  United  States  declared  war 
against  England  in  1812,  our  navy  consisted  of 
twenty  vessels,  the  largest  carrying  forty-four 
guns,  most  of  the  others  rating  under  thirty, 
while  England  had  over  a  thousand  ships  on  the 
rolls  of  her  navy,  two  hundred  and  fifty-four  of 
them  ships  of  the  line,  mounting  over  seventy- 
four  guns  each. 

"  It  really  wasn't  much  wonder  the  British 
laughed  at  the  idea  of  our  attempting  to  fight 
them  ;  especially  as  Britannia  had  ruled  the 
wave  up  to  that  time." 

"  Yes ;  the  Americans  must  have  been  a 
plucky  little  nation  to  try  it,"  laughed  Albert. 
"  they  must  have  been  desperately  ajagry  about 
something." 


ELSIE  AND  THE  EA  YMONDS.         205 

"  They  were,  and  with  good  reason,"  returned 
Max.  "  Oh,  such  wrongs  as  our  poor  sailors  had 
endured  for  years  from  British  naval  officers  ! 
It  makes  my  blood  boil  just  to  read,  at  this  late 
day,  of  their  arrogance  and  injustice,  and  the 
dreadful  cruelties  they  were  guilty  of  toward 
Americans  they  kidnapped  from  our  vessels." 

"  Kidnapped  ?  "  repeated  Albert. 

"  Yes  ;  what  else  could  you  call  it  when  a 
British  man-of-war  would  stop  an  American 
merchant-vessel  on  the  higt  seas — in  time  of 
peace — board  her,  order  the  crew  mustered  aft> 
pick  out  any  man  they  chose  to  say  was  an  Eng 
lishman,  and  carry  him  off  to  their  own  vessel 
against  his  will  ?  " 

"  Oh  yes,  I  see  you  refer  to  the  right  of 
search." 

"  Right  of  search,  indeed  ! "  exclaimed  Max 
hotly,  "  there  was  no  right  about  it,  it  was  all 
an  outrageous  wrong.  The  British  had  no  more 
right  to  search  our  ships  than  we  had  to  search 
theirs." 

"  But  deserters  should  Toe  caught  and  pun 
ished,"  said  Albert. 

"  Perhaps  that's  so,"  said  Max  :  "  I  don't  say 
it  is,  or  it  isn't  ;  but  they  often  and  often  took 
native-born  Americans,  asserting,  without  a 
shadow  of  proof,  that  they  were  English. 
American  captains  said  they  always  chose  the 
most  ship-shape  sailors  in  the  crew,  and,  of 


206          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

course,  those  wouldn't  always  be  the  Englishmen, 
supposing  there  were  any  Englishmen  among 
them. 

"  One  can  imagine  that  it  was  exceedingly 
exasperating  to  be  forced  in  that  way  into  for 
eign  service,  especially  that  of  a  nation  their 
own  country  had  been  having  a  bloody  war  with 
only  a  little  while  before  ;  under  the  red  flag  of 
England,  too,  instead  of  the  beautiful  Stars 
and  Stripes  they  loved  so  well. 

"  And  if  one  of  them  showed  any  unwilling 
ness  to  serve  his  kidnappers,  he  was  triced  up 
and  flogged  till  his  back  was  cut  to  ribbons,  and 
the  blood  spurted  at  every  blow. 

"  Of  course  they  detested  the  service  they 
had  been  forced  into,  and  that  was  made  so 
dreadful  to  them,  would  desert  whenever  they 
had  a  chance  ;  and  if  they  were  caught 
again  they  were  speedily  hung  at  the  yard- 
arm." 

'It  was  hard  when  a  mistake  was  made  and 
a  real  American  impressed,"  conceded  Albert, 
"  but,  of  course,  the  English  government  had  a 
right  to  take  her  own  men  wherever  she  could 
find  them." 

"  I  have  no  objection  to  Englishmen  submit 
ting  to  such  tyranny,  if  they  choose,"  sneered 
Max,  "but  Americans  are  made  of  different 
stuff  ;  they  are  free  and  glory  in  their  freedom, 
and  never  would,  and  never  will,  put  up  with 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.         20? 

such  treatment.  And  I  say  again,  British  offi 
cers  had  no  right  to  board  our  ships  without 
leave  or  license,  and  forcibly  rob  them  of  part 
of  their  crew.  It  was  an  abominably  cruel  and 
tyrannical  thing  for  them  to  do,  even  before  the 
Revolution,  and  most  outrageously  insulting 
beside,  after  the  war  when  we  were  no  longer 
colonies  of  Great  Britain,  but  free  and  indepen 
dent  states." 

"  I  don't  recall  the  occurrence  you  refer  to," 
said  Albert,  "but  surely  before  the  war  they 
had  the  same  right  to  impress  American  sub 
jects  as  they  had  to  take  their  fellow-subjects  of 
Great  Britain." 

"  Let  me  recall  one  incident  to  your  memory, 
and  see  if  even  an  Englishman  can  approve  of  it 
in  these  days,"  said  Max. 

"In  1764 — eleven  years  before  the  beginning^ 
of  the  war,  you  will  remember — the  British 
man-of-war  *  Maidstone '  lay  in  the  harbor  of 
Newport.  It  was  a  time  of  peace,  and  the  offi 
cers  had  nothing  to  do  ;  so  they  amused  them 
selves  sending  out  press-gangs  to  seize  any 
luckless  American  sailor  who  happened  to  be  on 
shore,  and  force  him  into  his  Majesty's  service 
aboard  their  vessel. 

"  The  life  on  board  a  British  man-of-war  was 
a  dreadful  one  in  those  times,  for  any  sailor  ; 
the  cat-o'-nine-tails  was  flourished  so  often,  and 
for  such  slight  offenses,  and  even  a  boy  mid- 


208          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

shipman  could  order  a  poor  fellow  to  the  grat 
ing  to  have  his  back  cut  to  ribbons. 

"  So  no  wonder  American  sailors  dreaded  be 
ing  forced  into  it  ;  they  had  no  peace  of  their 
lives  with  those  press-gangs  roaming  the  streets 
in  search  of  them  every  night,  and  breaking 
into  the  taverns  where  a  group  of  them  might 
be  smoking  and  chatting  together,  to  seize 
and  carry  them  off. 

"  But  the  incident  I  was  going  to  speak  of 
was  this  :  One  day  a  brig  came  sailing  up  the 
bay  into  the  harbor  of  Newport.  She  had  been 
on  a  long  voyage — to  the  west  coast  of  Africa — 
and  the  poor  fellows  aboard  of  her  were  just 
wild  with  joy  to  think  they  had  reached  home 
at  last  and  were  going  ashore  presently  to  see 
their  mothers  and  wives  and  sweethearts,  and 
all  the  rest  of  their  dear  ones  they  had  been 
separated  from  so  long,  and  who  had  crowded 
on  the  dock  to  watch  the  brig  coming  in. 

"  Oh,  I  can  imagine  how  they  felt !  for  I  re 
member  how  glad  we  always  were  when  papa's 
vessel  came  in  from  a  long  voyage,  and  we 
knew  that  he'd  be  with  us  presently  ;  and  so  I 
^know  something  of  how  terrible,  how  perfectly 
unbearable,  it  must  have  seemed  to  them,  when 
just  as  their  ship  was  anchored,  a  couple  of  long 
boats  from  the  man-of-war  came  pulling  up 
alongside  of  the  brig,  and  two  or  three  officers 
and  a  lot  of  sailors  climbed  on  board,  and  the 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          209 

head  one  ordered  the  American  captain  to  call 
his  men  aft,  saying  '  His  Majesty  lias  need  of  a 
few  fine  fellows  for  his  service.' 

"  It  was  bad  enough  when  they  thought  he 
was  going  to  take  some  of  them,  each  poor 
Jackie  fearing  he  might  be  the  unfortunate  one, 
yet  hoping  he  might  not  ;  but  just  think  of  it ! 
the  officer  ordered  every  one  of  them  to  go  below 
and  pack  up  his  traps. 

"  The  American  captain  expressed  his  astonish 
ment  and  indignation,  saying  that  the  poor  fel 
lows  were  just  home  from  a  long  voyage  and 
hadn't  seen  their  families  yet.  But  it  did  no 
good  ;  every  man  jack  of  them  was  carried  off 
to  the  man-of-war  and  forced  to  serve  aboard  of 
her. 

"  It  was  such  acts  of  tyranny  as  this  that  drove 
the  colonies  to  rebel,  and  finally  to  be  deter 
mined  to  be  free  and  independent." 

"And  that  drove  them  into  the  war  of  1812, 
too,"  said  Lulu,  "  Oh,  the  States,  I  mean  ;  they 
were  not  colonies  then,  though  the  British  did 
not  seem  to  have  found  it  out." 

"  It  was  a  plucky  little  nation  to  declare  war 
with.  England,"  again  remarked  Albert  good 
humoredly.  "  I  don't  know  how  they  ever  got 
up  courage  to  pit  their  twenty  vessels  against 
her  thousand." 

"  Love  of  liberty,  and  self-respect,  and  abhor- 
rence  of  insult  and  tyranny  nerved  them  to  it," 


310         ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

said  Max.  "  Do  you  remember  that  affair  of 
the  Chesapeake  and  Leopard  ?  " 

"  Not  at  all ;  if  I  ever  heard  of  it,  it  must 
have  made  but  little  impression  on  my  mind." 

"  Well,  I  suppose  it  would  naturally  make  a 
deeper  one  on  an  American  boy's,"  said  Max. 

"It  happened  in  1807,  when  we  were  at  peace 
with  England,  and  it  seems  to  me  the  most  in 
sulting  thing  ever  heard  of. 

"  The  Chesapeake,  an  American  man-of-war 
lying  at  the  navy-yard  at  Washington,  was  put 
in  commission  and  ordered  to  the  Mediterranean 
to  relieve  the  Constitution. 

"  It  took  nearly  a  month  to  get  her  ready, 
and  while  that  was  being  attended  to  the  British 
minister  informed  our  naval  authorities  that 
three  deserters  from  His  British  Majesty's  ship 
*  Melampus '  had  joined  the  crew  of  the  Chesa 
peake,  and  asked  to  have  them  given  up. 

"  Our  government  was  willing  to  do  it,  but 
on  inquiring  into  the  matter  found  that  the  men 
were  really  native-born  Americans  who  had  been 
impressed  by  the  British  and  forced  into  their 
service.  They  were  able  to  prove  it.  So,  of 
course,  they  weren't  given  up. 

"  The  facts  were  stated  to  the  British  minister, 
and  as  he  didn't  protest  any  further,  it  was  sup 
posed  he  was  satisfied. 

"  A  few  weeks  after  this  the  Chesapeake  left 
the  navy-yard  and  dropped  down  the  river  to 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          211 

Hampton  Roads.  There  she  stayed  for  some 
days,  taking  on  guns  and  stores  and  adding  to 
her  crew  till  she  had  three  hundred  and  seventy- 
five  men  ;  then  she  weighed  anchor  and  started 
on  her  voyage. 

"But  she  started  before  she  was  in  really 
proper  condition.  A  quantity  of  things,  su^h  as 
stores,  ropes,  lumber,  trunks,  and  furniture,  were 
piled  on  the  decks,  instead  of  being  stowed  away 
in  their  proper  places.  Somebody  was  to  blame 
for  that,  of  course,  though  papa  says  it  was  not 
Commodore  Barren,  who  was  in  command,  and 
nobody  could  have  dreamed  of  the  mischief  the 
confusion  was  to  cause,  remembering  that  it, 
was  in  a  time  of  peace,  and  right  on  our  own 
coast. 

"  But  there  were  four  English  men-of-war 
lying  quietly  at  anchor  in  Lynn  Haven  Bay,  and 
as  our  ship  passed  out  into  the  ocean  there 
was  a  stir  on  their  decks  ;  then  one  of  them 
weighed  anchor,  set  her  sails,  and  started  in 
pursuit.  The  Chesapeake  had  to  tack  fre 
quently,  on  account  of  a  stiff  breeze  that  waa 
blowing,  and  the  American  officers  noticed  that 
the  Leopard — the  British  ship — did  the  same, 
and  kept  right  in  their  wake  ;  but  it  never  oc 
curred  to  them  that  she  had  any  but  peaceful 
intentions.  The  ship  kept  on  her  course,  and 
the  sailors  set  busily  to  work  putting  the  decks 

in  order. 

f 


212          ELSIE  AKD  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  Presently  the  Leopard  bore  down  rapidly, 
and  when  she  got  near  enough,  hailed,  saying 
that  she  had  a  dispatch  for  Commodore  Barron. 
So  the  Chesapeake  hove  to  and  waited  for  a 
boat  to  be  sent.  Now  the  two  ships  were  lying 
broadside  to  broadside,  less  than  a  pistol-shot 
apart.  Still  the  commodore  did  not  suspect  any 
mischief.  Some  of  the  younger  officers  noticed 
that  the  Leopard  had  her  cannon  all  ready  to 
fire,  and  they  ought  to  have  told  the  commo 
dore  ;  but  they  didn't. 

"  Soon  a  boat  put  off  from  the  Leopard,  bring 
ing  an  English  officer.  One  of  the  American 
officers  received  him  and  took  him  to  the  com 
modore's  cabin.  There  he  produced  an  order 
from  the  British  Admiral  Berkeley,  command 
ing  all  British  ships  to  watch  for  the  Chesa 
peake  and  search  her  for  deserters. 

"  Commodore  Barron  said  he  didn't  harbor 
deserters,  and  couldn't  permit  his  crew  to  be 
mustered  by  an  officer  of  any  foreign  power. 
Just  then  there  was  a  signal  from  the  Leopard 
recalling  her  officer.  Then  Commodore  Barron 
came  out  of  his  cabin,  and  was  much  surprised  to 
see  that  the  Leopard  was  quite  in  fighting  trim." 

Sandy  McAlpine  had  drawn  near  the  little 
group,  and  was  listening  with  profound  interest 
to  Max's  story.  "  And  did  they  have  a  fight 
between  the  two  ships  ?  "  he  burst  out,  as  Max 
made  a  momentary  pause  in  His  narrative. 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          213 

"  A  fight  ! "  echoed  Max.  "  No  ;  there  was 
a  disgraceful,  insulting  attack  by  the  Leopard, 
which  the  Americans  had  not  power  to  respond 
to,  because,  though  their  guns  were  loaded  and 
they  ready  to  use  them  with  a  will,  no  matches, 
powder-flasks,  wads,  rammers  or  gun-locks 
could  be  found. 

"  While  they  were  hunting  for  them,  there 
was  a  hail  from  the  Leopard.  Commodore  Bar- 
ron  shouted  back  that  he  did  not  understand. 
They  hailed  again  : 

"  *  Commodore  Barren  must  be  aware  that 
the  orders  of  the  vice-admiral  must  be  obeyed.' 

"  The  commodore  again  answered  that  be 
didn't  understand,  and  after  another  hail  or  two 
the  British  fired  a  gun  at  the  Chesapeake,  then 
poured  in  a  full  broadside.  The  heavy  shot 
crashed  through  the  sides  of  the  American  ship, 
wounding  a  number  of  men." 

"And  they  could'nt  fire  back?"  queried 
Sandy. 

"  For  want  of  matches  and  the  other  neces 
sary  things  that  were  not  to  be  found,  they  had 
to  let  their  guns  keep  silence,  though  they  were 
filled  with  fury  that  they  had  no  chance  at  all 
to  defend  themselves  and  show  their  insolent 
foe  how  American  blue-jackets  can  fight.  They 
heated  pokers  red-hot  in  the  galley  fire,  but 
they  cooled  too  much  before  they  could  get 
them  to  the  guns. 


214          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  So  for  eighteen  minutes  the  Leopard  kept 
on  firing  at  a  helpless,  unresisting  foe.  Then 
the  Chesapeake's  flag  was  hauled  down,  two 
British  lieutenants  and  some  midshipmen  came 
in  a  boat  from  the  Leopard,  boarded  the  Chesa 
peake,  and  again  demanded  the  deserters. 

"  Of  course,  there  was  no  choice  but  to  give 
them  up.  Four  sailors  were  seized  and  carried 
aboard  the  Leopard  in  triumph.  One  of  them 
they  hung,  one  died  before  he  could  escape,  but 
five  years  later  the  other  two  got  back  to  the 
Chesapeake." 

"  Max,  you  are  forgetting  that  one  shot  was 
fired  from  the  Chesapeake  ?  "  said  Lulu. 

"Yes,  you  tell  about  it." 

"  There  was  a  Lieutenant  Allen  among  the 
officers  of  the  Chesapeake,  who  cried  out  in  his 
anger,  '  I'll  have  one  shot  at  those  rascals,  any 
how,'  ran  to  the  galley  fire,  picked  up  a  live 
coal  in  his  fingers,  and,  never  caring  for  the 
pain,  ran  with  it  to  one  of  the  guns  and  fired  it 
off  just  as  the  flag  came  fluttering  down." 

"  He  was  a  brave  fellow,"  commented  Sandy. 
"  Well,  I  s'pose  the  British  didn't  fire  any  more 
after  they  got  what  they  wanted.  But  hadn't 
their  shot  made  some  big  holes  in  the  Chesa 
peake  ?  " 

"  I  presume  so,"  replied  Lulu.  "  Anyhow, 
she  turned  and  went  back. 

"  Everybody  in  the  whole  country  was  f  uri- 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          215 

ous  on  hearing  the  news — which  I  don't  blame 
them  for,  I'm  sure  ;  but  it  was  a  great  shame 
that  the  government  punished  Commodore  Bar- 
ron,  by  suspending  him  from  the  service,  with 
out  pay,  for  five  years.  Papa  says  it  was  very 
unjust,  for  it  wasn't  his  fault  that  things  were 
not  in  order  on  the  vessel,  but  the  fault  of  the 
fitting-out  officers.  And  I  feel  perfectly  cer 
tain  that  the  commodore  and  everybody  else 
on  the  Chesapeake  would  have  fought  bravely 
if  they'd  had  half  a  chance,  and  whipped  the 
insolent  Briti..h  well.  Oh,  I  do  wish  they  had 
had  a  chance !  " 

"  Well,  never  mind,"  said  Max.  "  We  whipped 
them  well  in  the  war  that  followed  a  few  years 
later." 

"  Now,  if  I  remember  right,  the  Americans 
didn't  always  whip  in  that  war  either  on  land 
or  on  water,"  said  Albert. 

"  No,  not  always,"  acknowledged  Max,  "  but 
a  good  many  times  ;  and  the  war  accomplished 
what  we  went  into  it  for  :  putting  a  stop  to  their 
insolent  claim  to  a  right  to  search  our  vessels, 
and  their  impressment  of  our  seamen." 

"Was  that  mentioned  and  given  up  in  the 
treaty  of  peace  ?  " 

"  No,"  acknowledged  Max,  "  but  they  haven't 
tried  it  since,  and  they'd  better  not,  as  I  gues« 
they  know." 

"  Perhaps  you  mightn't  have  fared  so  well  if 


216          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

we  hadn't  had  another  war  on  our  hands  at  the 
same  time,"  retorted  Albert. 

But  just  here  the  talk  was  interrupted  by 
Captain  Raymond  and  Mr.  Austin  joining  them, 
the  former  coming  from  his  interview  with  Mrs. 
Me  Alpine  in  the  sitting-room,  the  latter  enter 
ing  from  the  street. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

"  CAN'T  we  go  to  our  own  rooms  now,  papa  ?" 
asked  Lulu,  when  their  English  friends  had  bid 
den  good-night  and  gone. 

"Yes,"  he  said,  taking  her  hand  and  leading 
the  way,  Max  following  not  at  all  unwillingly. 

"  I  suppose  you  wajit  to  finish  your  letter  now, 
Lulu  ? "  the  captain  said,  as  they  entered  his 
bedroom,  which  they  made  their  sitting-room 
also  when  desirous  of  being  quite  to  themselves. 

"No,  sir,  I  don't.  I'd  rather  let  it  wait  till 
Monday,  if  I  may  sit  on  your  knee  a  little  while 
and  have  you  talk  to  me." 

"  Have  me  talk  to  you  ?  or  let  you  talk  to 
me  ? "  he  asked  with  playful  look  and  tone,  as 
he  sat  down  and  drew  her  to  the  coveted  place. 

"  Both,  you  dear  papa,"  she  answered,  put 
ting  her  arms  around  his  neck  and  giving  him 
an  ardent  kiss. 

"  And  am  I  to  do  nothing  but  listen  ?  "  asked 
Max,  pulling  forward  a  chair  and  seating  him 
self  close  beside  them. 

"  Just  as  you  please,  young  man,"  laughed  his 
father  ;  "  but  I  doubt  if  you  can  refrain  from 
putting  in  a  word  now  and  then." 
217 


218          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  He's  been  talking  ever  so  fast  almost  all  the 
evening,"  said  Lulu;  "only  letting  me  have  a 
word  now  and  then." 

"  Ah,  indeed !  I  hope  it  has  been  good- 
humored  and  sensible  talk  ?  " 

"  Very  sensible  (I  was  quite  proud  of  my 
brother  )  "  replied  Lulu,  giving  Max  a  laughing 
glance,  "  but  I'm  not  so  sure  about  the  good- 
humor.  I  shouldn't  wonder  if  Albert  Austin 
had  made  up  his  mind  by  this  time  that  Max 
and  I  are  not  very  partial  to  the  English." 

"I  hope  you  haven't  been  rude  to  Albert,  my 
children?"  the  captain  'said,  with  sudden, 
gravity. 

"  I  hope  not,  papa  ;  I  don't  think  we  were, 
though  we  stated  a  few  historical  facts — per 
haps  a  little  strongly,"  replied  Lulu. 

"  What  were  they  ?  "  he  asked,  "  you  may  tell 
me  about  it  if  you  like." 

They  then  repeated  the  substance  of  their 
conversation  with  Albert,  their  father  listening 
with  evident  interest. 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  story,  he  said,  "  I 
think  from  your  account  that  Albert  showed 
much  good  temper  and  moderation  in  the  way 
he  bore  your  strictures  on  his  country  and 
countrymen.  You  can  not  be  too  patriotic  to 
please  me,  my  dears,  but  I  want  you  to  be  care- 
ful  of  the  feelings  of  others,  never  wounding 
them  unnecessarily.  Albert  and  his  father  may 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          219 

be  considered,  to  some  extent,  our  guests,  as 
strangers  visiting  our  country,  so  that  we  should 
be  doubly  careful  to  be  kind  and  considerate 
toward  them." 

"  I'll  try  to  keep  that  in  mind,  papa,"  said 
Max,  "  standing  up  for  my  own  country  always 
but  not  abusing  his — when  I  can  help  it.  Just 
as  we  were  separating  to-night  he  said  to  me  in 
a  low  tone, '  We  must  have  some  more  talks  on 
the  subject  we  were  on  to-night.  I  haven't  any 
books  at  hand  to  consult,  but  I  must  inform 
myself  by  questioning  papa,  and  then  I'll 
be  better  prepared  to  stand  up  for  old  Eng 
land.'  " 

"  Did  he  look  cross  when  he  said  it  ?  "  asked 
Lulu. 

"  No,"  replied  Max ;  "  he's  quite  a  gentleman, 
I  think." 

"  As  his  father  is,"  remarked  the  captain. 
"  *  Like  father,  like  son,'  is  an  old  saying,  so  re 
member,  my  children,  that  people  will  judge  of 
me  by  your  behavior." 

"  Yes,  sir,"  said  Max,  "  I  think  I  shall  be  the 
more  careful  to  behave  well  on  that  account." 

"  I  too,"  chimed  in  Lulu.  "  It  would  be  a 
dreadful  thing  if  we  should  disgrace  our  father. 
Wouldn't  it,  Max  ?  " 

"  Yes,  indeed  !  "  exclaimed  the  lad  earnestly. 
"  I  have  often  felt,  oh,  so  thankful  that  I  had  a 
father  I  could  respect  and  reverence  and  honor; 


220         ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

for  I've  known  boys  whose  fathers  were  drunken, 
wicked,  men,  that  they  couldn't  help  being 
ashamed  of." 

"  Give  all  the  glory  and  thanks  to  God,  who 
has  kept  your  father  from  drunkenness  and  crime, 
my  boy,"  the  captain  said,  laying  his  hand  af 
fectionately  on  his  son's  shoulder,  and  giving 
him  a  look  full  of  fatherly  affection.  "  But  for 
His  restraining  grace  I  might  have  been  the 
worst  of  criminals." 

Then  taking  up  the  Bible  and  opening  it, 
"  Now,  we  will  have  our  reading  and  prayer," 
he  said,  "  and  then  go  to  our  beds." 

"  I  just  know  Gracie  is  longing  for  this,  if 
she's  awake,"  said  Lulu,  as  her  father  took  her 
in  his  arms,  after  prayers,  to  give  her  a  good 
night  kiss. 

"  I  trust  she  is  asleep  ere  this,  the  dear  pet !  " 
he  replied.  "  I  seem  to  see  the  dear  little  face 
lying  on  my  pillow  with  the  sweet  blue  eyes 
closed  in  sleep  and  almost  a  smile  on  her  lips  ; 
the  babies  asleep  in  the  nursery,  with  the  door 
open  between,  and  Mamma  Vi  seated  some 
where  near,  writing  a  letter  to  her  absent  hus 
band.  Ah,  I  should  be  homesick  to-night  if  I 
hadn't  these  two  of  my  loved  flock  with  me." 

"And  I'd  be  dreadfully  homesick  if  I  wasn't 
with  my  dear  father,"  she  responded,  clinging 
lovingly  to  him.  "  You  are  a  good  deal  more 
than  half  of  home  to  me,  papa  ;  and,  oh, 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          221 

but  you  were  good  and  kind  'to  bring  me  with 
you  ! " 

"  And  me,  too,"  added  Max.  "  Papa,  I  am 
sure  this  trip  to  the  far  West  will  be  something 
to  remember  all  my  life." 

"  I  hope  so,  my  boy,"  his  father  said.  "  It  has 
been  my  desire  to  make  it  so  enjoyable  to  you 
both  that  it  will  be  to  you  a  pleasant  memory 
all  your  days. 

"  To-morrow  we  will  attend  morning  and 
evening  service  at  the  mission  church — Sunday 
school  also — and  in  the  afternoon  have  our 
usual  home  exercises,  going  on  with  our  regular 
Bible  and  catechism  lessons  exactly  as  if  we 
were  at  Woodburn. 

"  On  Monday  I  expect  to  take  you  to  see  the 
cattle  ranch  Mr.  Short  pointed  out  in  the  dis 
tance,  this  afternoon." 

Both  thanked  him,  expressing  themselves 
pleased  with  the  plans  he  had  mapped  out  for 
the  two  days. 

"  Papa,  shall  I  dress  for  church  when  I  get  up 
in  the  morning  ?  "  asked  Lulu. 

"  Yes,"  he  answered.  "  "Wear  one  of  your 
plainer  dresses.  I  think  we  should  not  dishonor 
God's  house  by  being  shabby  or  slovenly  in  our 
attire,  nor  should  we  dress  in  a  way  to  attract 
attention  and  divert  the  thoughts  of  others  from 
the  service." 

"  Yes,  sir,  I  know  that's  what  you  have  told 


222          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

me  at  home,  and  that  you  never  let  me  wear  my 
gayest  things  to  church.  And  I  suppose  it 
would  make  even  more  difference  here,  where 
most  of  the  congregation  must  be  quite  poor 
and  ignorant?  " 

"  I  think  so,"  he  said  ;  "  and  also  that  you 
will  be  less  likely  to  be  taken  up  with  thoughts 
of  yourself  and  your  own  appearance  if  you  are 
not  gayly  dressed." 

Captain  Raymond's  arrangements  for  spend 
ing  the  holy  hours  of  the  Lord's  Day  were  duly 
carried  out.  The  hour  for  morning  service  in 
the  church  he  had  provided  for  Minersville, 
found  him  and  his  son  and  daughter  seated 
among  the  worshippers.  The  Austins  were  there 
also  ;  and  it  was  the  same  again  in  the  evening. 

They  all  visited  the  Sunday  school,  too,  and 
took  part  in  its  exercises.  The  two  gentlemen 
had  not  been  acquainted  many  hours  before  dis 
covering  that  they  were  followers  of  the  same 
Saviour,  and  each  felt  it  to  be  a  closer  bond  of 
union  than  would  have  been  that  of  the  same 
nativity  without  it. 

The  Austins  joined  the  Raymonds  by  invita 
tion,  in  Monday's  excursion,  and  indeed  in 
almost  every  other  one  taken  while  they  all  re 
mained  in  Minersville,  which  was  for  several 
weeks. 

Captain  Raymond  took  his  children  with  him 
almost  everywhere  that  he  went ;  to  Lulu's 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          223 

extreme  satisfaction  her  days  were  spent  prin 
cipally  in  walks  and  rides,  the  latter  becoming 
more  enjoyable  as  she  made  better  acquaintance 
with  her  pony  and  grew  confident  of  her  ability 
to  guide  and  control  it.  Her  father,  however, 
always  rode  by  her  side,  and  kept  constant 
watch  over  her  safety. 

Their  evenings  were  apt  to  be  spent  on  the 
porch,  as  the  weather  was  such  as  to  make 
that  the  most  enjoyable  spot  at  that  time. 
Often  one  or  more  of  the  McAlpine  family 
would  be  there — perhaps  at  the  farther  end  of 
the  porch,  so  as  not  to  seem  to  intrude  upon  the 
Raymonds  and  their  guests,  for  Mr.  Austin  and 
Albert  were  apt  to  be  with  them  ;  Mr.  Short, 
too,  not  unfrequently. 

But  occasionally  the  young  people  were  there 
without  their  elders,  the  captain,  perhaps,  busied 
with  some  writing  in  his  own  room. 

The  lads,  Albert  and  Max,  were  very  good 
friends,  in  spite  of  an  occasional  tilt  over  the 
respective  claims  of  the  two  countries  to  pre 
eminence  in  one  thing  or  another,  usually  in  re 
gard  to  the  bravery  and  competence  of  her 
soldiers  and  sailors. 

One  evening  Albert  began  lauding  Nelson  as 
the  greatest  naval  hero  the  world  had  ever  seen, 
winding  up  his  eulogy  with  a  challenge  to  Max 
to  mention  any  one  to  compare  to  him  in  sea« 
manship,  fighting  qualities,  or  bravery. 


224          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  Well,  I  don't  know  of  any  other  English^ 
man  to  compare  to  him,"  replied  Max  coolly, 
"  but  we've  had  a  number  of  officers  in  our  navy 
that  I  think  were  quite  equal  to  him." 

"  Which,  pray  ?  "  sneered  Albert. 

•'  There  was  Commodore  McDonough,  who 
whipped  the  British  in  the  battle  of  Lake  Cham- 
plain.  It  was  so  terrible  a  fight  that  one  of  the 
British  sailors  engaged  in  it,  and  who  had  been 
with  Nelson  at  Trafalgar,  said  that  battle  was  a 
mere  flea-bite  in  comparison." 

"  But  in  the  action  at  Trafalgar  Lord  Nelson 
defeated  the  combined  navies  of  France  and 
Spain." 

"Yes,  the  British  whipped  them,  and  the 
Americans  whipped  the  British,"  said  Max. 
"  You  ought  to  think  it  a  greater  feat  to  whip 
the  British  than  to  conquer  in  fight  with  French 
men  and  Spaniards,"  he  added  laughingly. 

"  But  the  odds  against  Nelson  were  very  much 
greater.  Our  force  in  the  battle  of  Lake  Cham- 
plain  was  only  slightly  superior." 

"  I  am  not  so  sure  about  that,"  replied  Max, 
"  I  know  at  least  one  historian  says  it  was 
decidedly  superior.  But  McDonough  was  a 
Christian,  and  before  going  into  the  fight  he 
called  his  officers  about  him,  and  kneeling  on  the 
quarter  deck,  asked  help  of  God  in  the  coming 
battle." 

"Then,  if  his   prayer  was  granted,  he  had 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          225 

better  help  than  all  the  navies  of  the  world 
could  have  given  him." 

"  That's  so,"  said  3iax.  "  And  he  gave  the 
glory  of  the  victory  where  it  belonged  ;  in  his 
dispatch  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy  he  said 
God  had  granted  it. 

"  He  was  gallant  and  generous  as  a  conqueror; 
when  the  British  officers  tendered  him  their 
swords  after  the  surrender,  he  put  them  back, 
saying,  'Gentlemen,  your  gallant  conduct  makes 
you  worthy  to  wear  your  weapons.  Return 
them  to  their  scabbards.' 

"  Commodore  Perry  was  another  of  our  naval 
heroes.  He  won  the  victory  in  the  battle  of 
Lake  Erie  in  the  war  of  1812,  and  wrote  that 
famous  dispatch,  *  We  have  met  the  enemy,  and 
they  are  ours,  two  ships,  two  brigs,  one  schooner, 
and  one,  sloop.' 

"  Then  there  were  the  great  naval  com 
manders  of  our  civil  war,"  Max  went  on.  "  I 
don't  believe  a  greater  one  than  Farragut  ever 
lived,  or  as  great  a  one,  unless  it  might  be  Por 
ter,  who  had  a  large  share  in  the  taking  of  New 
Orleans  ;  helping  ever  so  much  with  his  mortar 
boats. 

"  Why,  the  undertaking  was  so  difficult,  that 
a  number  of  English  and  French  naval  officers 
who  visited  Farragut  while  he  was  in  the  lower 
Mississippi  completing  his  preparations  for  pas 
sing  on  up  to  take  the  city,  told  him  they  had 


226          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

carefully  examined  the  defences  of  the  Confed 
erates,  and  that  it  would  be  sheer  madness  for 
him  to  attack  the  forts  with  wooden  ships  such 
as  his  ;  he'd  be  sure  to  be  defeated. 

"But  he  was  not  to  be  discouraged — the  brave 
old  man  !  He  said, '  You  may  be  right,  but  I  was 
sent  here  to  make  the  attempt.  I  came  here  to 
reduce  or  pass  the  forts,  and  to  take  New  Orleans, 
and  I  shall  try  it  on.'  And  so  he  did  try  it  on, 
and  succeeded." 

"  I  admire  such  grit,"  said  Albert.  "  I've 
read  quite  a  good  deal  about  that  war — a  tre 
mendous  one  it  was — and  I  think  there  were 
some  very  plucky  things  done  on  both  sides." 

"  Yes,"  returned  Max  ;  "  I'm  proud  of  the 
bravery  shown  by  both  the  '  Yanks '  and  the 
'  Johnnies,'  as  they  called  each  other." 

Here  Lulu,  who  had  thus  far  contented  her 
self  with  listening,  put  in  a  word  : 

"  I  don't  believe  there  ever  was  or  could  be  a 
braver  or  more  wonderful  feat  than  Lieutenant 
Gushing  performed  when  he  blew  up  the  rebel 
ram  Albemarle.  He  dashed  up  along  side  of 
it,  in  his  little  vessel,  through  a  perfect  shower 
of  bullets,  then,  finding  that  the  ram  was  behind 
a  wall  of  logs,  he  sheered  off  and  dashed  over 
that,  he  standing  up  in  the  stern  of  his  boat, 
with  the  tiller  ropes  in  one  hand  and  the  lanyard 
of  a  torpedo  in  the  other,  never  flinching,  though 
a  big  gun  was  trained  right  on  him  ;  but  he  got 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          227 

his  torpedo  just  where  he  wanted  it  under  the 
ram,  gave  his  lanyard  a  jerk,  and  fired  the  thing 
off,  so  that  it  blew  up  the  ram  at  the  same  in 
stant  that  their  great  gun  sent  a  hundred  pound 
shot  right  through  the  bottom  of  his  boat.  Oh, 
such  a  roar  as  the  two — the  torpedo  and  the 
gun — must  have  made,  going  off  together  in 
that  way  I  " 

"  It  was  a  wonderfully  brave  deed  ! "  ex 
claimed  Albert  with  enthusiasm.  "  Did  Cush- 
ing  himself,  or  any  of  his  crew,  escape  alive  ?  I 
have  forgotten,  if  ever  I  knew  about  it." 

"  Yes,"  replied  Lulu  ;  "  he  escaped  to  the 
Union  fleet,  after  almost  incredible  hardships 
and  dangers,  the  only  one  of  thirteen  who  had 
set  out  on  the  expedition  two  days  before." 

"  And  the  ram  was  destroyed  ?" 

"  Yes,  she  was  a  total  wreck.  Gushing 
wasn't  sure  of  it  till,  while  he  was  lying  in  hid 
ing  in  a  swamp  and  half  covered  with  water, 
two  Confederate  officers  passing  along  near  him, 
said  to  each  other  that  the  Albemarle  was  a 
total  wreck. 

"  They  didn't  see  him,  but  he  heard  what  they 
said,  and  it  was  such  good  news  that  it  gave 
him  fresh  courage  to  bear  his  sufferings  and 
exert  himself  to  get  back  to  the  Federal  fleet." 

"  Your  father  was  on  the  Union  side,  I  sup 
pose?"  Albert  said  inquiringly. 

"  Yes,  indeed  !  "  replied  Max  and  Lulu,  both 


228          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

BDeaking  at  once  ;  then  Max  went  on,  "  but  he 
was  only  a  boy,  younger  than  I  am  now,  when 
the  war  began." 

"  And  what  was  it  all  about  ? "  asked  Al 
bert.  "  I'm  not  sure  I  ever  clearly  understood 
that?" 

"  The  Confederates  were  trying  to  break  up 
the  Union,  and  the  Federals  fought  to  save  it," 
replied  Max.  "  Papa  has  made  it  very  clear  to 
me  that  the  Revolutionary  War  was  fought  to 
win  freedom  from  Great  Britain's  galling  yoke, 
and  make  ourselves  a  nation  ;  the  War  of  1812 
to  convince  the  British  that  we  were  free  and 
independent,  and  not  to  be  maltreated  with  im 
punity.  Those  two  wars  did  that  for  us  ; — 
made  the  dear  old  Union  ;  and  the  Civil  War 
saved  it  from  being  destroyed  by  those  who 
ought  to  have  been  ready  to  defend  and  preserve 
it  at  the  risk  of  their  lives.  I  do  believe  they 
would  now,"  he  added  ;  "  or  rather  the  new 
generation,  who  have  taken  their  places,  would. 
I  believe,  if  England  or  France  or  any  other 
nation  should  attack  us,  the  people  of  the  South 
ern  states  would  fight  for  the  Union  quite  as 
bravely  and  with  as  much  fury  and  determina 
tion  as  any  men  of  any  other  part  of  our  great 
big  country." 

"  Is  that  so  ? "  said  Albert.  "  Well,  I  trust 
there  will  be  no  more  wars  between  England 
and  the  United  States." 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          229 

"  I  am  sure  I  can  echo  that  wish,"  returned 
Max.  "  It  seems  a  dreadful  thing  for  two 
Christian  nations  to  go  to  war  with  each  other." 

"  Very  true,"  said  Albert  ;  "  it  would  cer 
tainly  look  strangely  inconsistent  to  the  hea 
then  peoples  we  are  both  trying  to  convert." 

"  It  couldn't  fail  to  do  so,"  assented  Max. 
"  War  is  a  dreadful  thing  ;  reading  descriptions 
of  the  awful  scenes  of  bloodshed  and  carnage 
on  board  of  vessels,  and  in  land  battles,  too,  I've 
sometimes  thought  Satan  must  take  great  and 
fiendish  delight  in  it." 

"  Yes,"  said  Lulu,  again  joining  in  the  talk  ; 
"  I've  heard  papa  make  a  remarMike  that,  but  he 
said  at  the  same  time  that  there  were  worse 
things  than  war,  when  it  was  waged  to  secure 
liberty,  not  only  for  ourselves,  but  for  others  ; 
that  war  could  never  be  right  on  both  sides,  but 
it  often  was  on  one.  On  the  side  of  America  in 
her  two  wars  with  England,  for  instance." 

"  My  father  surprised  me  by  saying  the  same 
thing  when  I  questioned  him  on  the  subject 
after  that  talk  we  had  about  it  before,"  said 
Albert.  "  He  added  that,  of  course,  England 
being  his  native  land,  he  loved  her  better  than 
any  other,  and  always  should,  but  for  all  that 
he  couldn't  shut  his  eyes  to  the  fact  that  she  had 
not  always  been  in  the  right. 

"The  colonies  were  oppressed,  and  had  a 
right  to  be  free  if  they  desired  separation  from 


230          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

the  mother  country  ;  and  that  after  they  hafl 
been  acknowledged  free  and  independent  states, 
they  were  no  more  under  English  rule  than  any 
other  foreign  nation,  and  as,  according  to  inter 
national  law,  the  public  and  private  vessels  of 
every  nation  are  subject,  on  the  high  seas,  to 
the  jurisdiction  of  the  State  they  belong  to,  and 
to  no  other,  and  no  nation  has  the  right  of  visi 
tation  and  search  of  the  vessels  of  another  na 
tion,  Americans  were  justly  indignant  over  the 
insistence  upon,  and  the  carrying  out,  of  the  so- 
called  right  of  search  by  British  men-of-war  ; 
especially,  as  native-born  Americans  had  no 
security  against  being  impressed  as  Englishmen, 
and  indeed  very  often  were.  It  must  have  been 
awfully  hard  on  them,  I'm  sure." 

"  Yes,"  returned  Max,  "  and  your  father  must 
be  an  honorable  and  just  man  to  acknowledge 
it." 

"Just  my  opinion,"  Albert  said,  with  a  frank, 
good-humored  smile  ;  "but  if  it's  noble  to  ac 
knowledge  one's  own  individual  faults,  why  not 
to  own  that  your  country  may  have  sometimes 
been  in  the  wrong  ?  " 

"  Certainly,"  said  Max,  "  and  I've  heard  papa 
say  he  thought  we  were  the  aggressors  in  the 
war  with  Mexico,  and  that  our  government  had 
done  grievous  wrong  to  the  poor  Indians." 

"  It's  very  true  that  a  good  many  Americana 
Were  impressed,"  remarked  Lulu  ;  "  thousands 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          231 

af  them  ;  even  while  we  were  fighting  France 
and  so  helping  England,  she  kept  on  impressing 
our  sailors  and  seizing  our  ships  whenever  she 
eould  find  the  smallest  excuse  for  doing  so ; 
they  didn't  respect  even  the  ships  belonging  to 
our  government  when  they — the  British,  I 
mean — were  enough  stronger  to  put  resistance 
out  of  the  question  on  the  part  of  the  Amer 
icans. 

"  And  they  even  impressed  three  of  our  sail 
ors  after  the  War  of  1812  had  begun.  I  read 
about  it  not  long  ago,  and  remember  very  well 
how  shamefully  they  were  treated. 

"  They  refused  to  serve  against  their  country, 
and  for  that  were  punished  with  five  dozen 
lashes,  well  laid  on.  Still  they  refused,  and  two 
days  later  got  four  dozen  more,  and  two  days 
after  that  two  dozen  more. 

"  But  all  the  beating  the  British  could  give 
them  wouldn't  make  them  fight  against  their 
country  ;  so  they  put  them  in  irons  for  three 
months,  till  the  ship  reached  London. 

"  There  they  heard  of  the  glorious  victory  of 
the  Constitution  over  the  Guerriere  and  were  so 
rejoiced  that  they  made  a  flag  by  tearing  up 
some  of  their  clothes  into  strips  and  sewing 
them  together,  then  hung  it  on  a  gun  and 
cheered  for  the  Stars  and  Stripes.  Of  course, 
they  got  another  flogging  for  that. 

"  But  there  were  twenty  thousand  American 


832          ELSIE  AND   THE  EA7MOND8. 

seamen  in  the  British  navy,  five  times  as  many 
as  we  had  in  our  own  navy,  and  quite  too  many 
to  beat  into  subjection,  so  they  imprisoned 
thousands  of  them  in  old  hulks,  where  they 
froze  in  winter  and  sweltered  in  summer  and 
suffocated  all  the  time — so  crowded  together 
they  were  hardly  able  to  get  a  breath  of  fresh 
air ;  eaten  up  by  vermin  also,  and  only  half -fed  ; 
on  very  poor  food,  too. 

"Of  course  they  grew  sick,  and  altogether 
had  a  dreadful,  dreadful  life  ;  all  because  they 
wouldn't  fight  against  their  country." 

"  It  was  awfully  hard  on  them,"  admitted  Al 
bert,  "but  please,  Miss  Lulu,  don't  hold  English 
men  of  the  present  day  responsible  for  what 
was  done  so  many  years  ago." 

"  I'll  try  not  to,"  she  said  with  a  smile  ;  "  cer 
tainly  I  shall  not  hold  you  responsible,  for  I  feel 
quite  sure  you  would  never  be  so  unjust  and 
cruel." 

"  Thanks,"  he  returned  with  a  gratified  look, 
and  she  went  on. 

"I  know  there  were  Englishmen,  even  in  that 
day,  who  wouldn't  have  had  one  poor  sailor  so 
treated  if  they  could  have  helped  it.  Captain 
Dacres,  of  the  Guerriere,  for  one. 

"  He  had  an  American  captain  prisoner  on  his 
vessel  at  the  time  of  his  battle  with  the  Consti 
tution,  and  before  the  fight  began  politely  told 
him,  as  he  supposed  he  didn't  want  to  fight 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.         233 

against  his  country,  he  might  go  below,  if  he 
chose ;  and  he  gave  the  same  privilege  to  ten 
American  sailors  who  had  been  impressed  on  to 
his  ship." 

"  Yes,"  said  Max,  "  He  was  a  fine  fellow ;  and 
if  all  his  countiymen  had  been  like  him,  I  don't 
believe  there  would  have  been  any  war  between 
England  and  America." 

"  I  admire  his  conduct,"  Albert  said,  "  and 
hope  I  should  have  acfed  as  he  did,  had  I  been 
in  his  place." 

"  I  dare  say  you  would,"  said  Max. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

"  PAPA,"  said  Max,  on  finding  himself  alone 
with  his  father  and  sister  that  evening,  "  we'll 
spend  the  Fourth  here,  wont  we  ?  " 

"  Probably,  my  son,"  was  the  reply.  "  I  do 
not  now  expect  to  leave  Minersville  before  the 
middle  or  perhaps  the  last  of  July.  But  why 
do  you  ask  ?  " 

"  I  was  thinking  whether  we  mightn't  get  up 
some  sort  of  a  celebration,"  said  Max. 

"  Oh,  yes,  do  let  us,  papa  !  "  cried  Lulu.  "It 
would  be  such  fun." 

"  Would  it  ?  "  he  said,  smiling  at  her  eager 
ness.  "  I  should  think  that  would  depend  on 
how  we  celebrate.  "What  would  you  two  like 
to  do  to  show  your  patriotism  on  the  nation's 
birthday  ?  " 

"  We  shall  want  your  help  in  deciding  what 
might  be  done,"  papa,"  said  Max. 

"  We  might  treat  the  mission  school,  couldn't 
we,  papa  ?  "  asked  Lulu. 

"I  like  that  idea,"  he  answered,  "  but  we  must 
consider  what  sort  of  treat  it  shall  be." 

"  Good  things  to  eat,  such  as  thejr  do  not  get 
every  day — nuts,  candies,  raisins,  oranges,  figs, 
234 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          235 

cakes,  anything  nice  that  we  can  get.  Could  we 
Bend  away  somewhere  for  such  things,  papa  ? 
I'm  afraid  they  are  not  to  be  had  in  the  stores 
here  ;  at  least  not  many  of  them." 

"  I  think  I  can  order  by  telegraph  and  have 
them  brought  in  season  by  express  on  the  rail 
road,"  he  answered.  "  We  have  about  a  week  in 
which  to  make  our  arrangements." 

"  Oh,  good !  then  you'll  do  it,  wont  you,, 
papa?" 

"  I  think  so,"  he  said,  in  an  indulgent  tone. 

"  And  let's  distribute  some  small  flags  among 
the  children,"  said  Max.  "  And  have  fireworks 
in  the  evening." 

"  Oh,  yes,  yes  ! "  exclaimed  Lulu,  clapping  her 
hands  and  jumping  up  and  down  in  delight. 
"  Mayn't  we,  papa  ?  " 

"  I  think  we  will,"  he   said  ;  "  but  before  we 
quite  decide  the  question  we  will  talk  the  matter 
over  with  Mr.  Short.     He  knows  the  tastes  of 
the  people  here  much  better  than  we  do,  and 
may  have  some  good  suggestions  to  make." 

"  Perhaps  the  minister  and  the  teacher  might 
give  some  good  suggestions,  too,"  Max  said. 

"Very  likely,"  replied  his  father.  "  We  will 
consult  them  also." 

The  proposed  consultations  were  held  early 
the  next  morning,  and  the  necessary  orders  dis 
patched  to  the  nearest  points  where  they  could 
be  filled. 


236          ELSIE  AND  TEE  RAYMONDS. 

Max  and  Lulu  were  very  full  of  the  subject, 
and  talked  of  it  at  the  table  not  a  little,  exciting 
a  good  deal  of  interest  and  curiosity  in  the  mind 
of  Marian,  as  she  overheard  a  remark  now  and 
again  while  attending  to  their  wants. 

There  was  a  fine  natural  grove  of  forest  trees 
on  the  outskirts  of  the  village,  and  there  it  had 
been  decided  the  town's  people  were  to  be  in 
vited  to  assemble  on  the  morning  of  the  Fourth 
to  listen  to  an  oration  by  the  foremost  lawyer 
of  the  place,  and  the  reading  of  the  Declaration 
of  Independence  by  Captain  Raymond  ;  also  to 
join  in  the  singing  of  patriotic  songs. 

The  children  of  the  mission-school  would  be 
taken  to  the  grove  in  a  body,  marching  in  pro 
cession,  carrying  flags  and  banners.  After  the 
exercises  were  over  they  would  be  marched  back 
to  the  schoolroom  and  treated  to  cakes,  candies, 
fruits  and  ices. 

There  were  to  be  fire-works  in  the  evening, 
set  off  in  front  of  Mrs.  Me  Alpine's  boarding- 
house,  which,  cornering  on  two  very  wide 
streets,  was  quite  a  good  place  for  the  display. 
"  Mr.  Short  seemed  really  pleased  with  the 
idea  of  having  a  celebration,  didn't  he,  papa  ?  " 
Lulu  said,  at  the  dinner  table. 

"  I  thought  so,"  returned  her  father.  "  And 
it  was  fortunate  that  he  knew  some  one  capable 
of  delivering  an  oration  on  the  subject  at  so 
short  notice,  and  that  arrangements  could  b« 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          237 

made  in  season  for  a  little  advertisement  of  our 
plans  for  the  Fourth,  in  this  week's  issue  of  the 
county  paper.'' 

"  I  daresay  it  will  be  the  first  celebration 
of  the  Fourth  of  July  ever  seen  by  Albert  or 
his  father,"  remarked  Max.  "I  hope  every 
thing  will  go  off  nicely,  so  that  they  may  be 
favorably  impressed." 

On  leaving  the  table  Lulu  seated  herself  in 
the  porch  with  a  book.  She  was  still  sitting 
there  alone  when  Marian  came  out  with  her  hat 
on  and  a  basket  in  her  hand. 

"  Do  you  feel  inclined  for  a  walk,  Miss  Lulu  ?" 
she  asked.  "  I  am  going  down  town  on  an 
errand  for  mother,  and  should  be  delighted  to 
have  your  company  if  you  would  like  to  go." 

"  Yes,  I  should,"  returned  Lulu.  "  I'll  go  if 
I  can  get  permission.  Papa  is  in  his  room 
writing  letters  ;  can  you  wait  a  minute  while  I 
run  and  ask  him  ?  " 

"  Oh,  yes,  indeed  ;  two  minutes,  if  you  wish," 
replied  Marian  sportively,  and  Lulu  hurried  into 
the  house. 

She  was  back  again  almost  immediately,  with 
hat,  gloves  and  parasol. 

"  Papa  says  I  may  go  with  you  to  do  your 
errand,  but  must  come  directly  home  again." 

"I  didn't  suppose  you  would  have  to  ask  per 
mission  just  to  go  down  town  with  me,"  re* 
Marian,  in  surprise,  as  they  walked  o» 


238          ELSIE  AKD  THE  RAYMONDS. 

together;  "  your fathe/  seems  to  pet  you  so  that 
I  had  an  idea  you  could  do  exactly  as  you 
pleased." 

"  Oh,  no,  indeed  !  "  Lulu  answered,  with  a 
contented  little  laugh.  "  Papa  pets  and  indul 
ges  us  all,  but  still  he  is  very  strict  about  some 
things.  I  must  never  go  anywhere  without 
asking  leave  ;  not  outside  of  the  grounds,  by 
myself,  when  I'm  at  home." 

"I  suppose  that  is  because  he's  afraid  some 
thing  might  harm  you  ?  something  or  some 
body  ?  "  Marian  said,  interrogatively. 

"  Yes,  I  know  that's  his  reason,  and  it's  be 
cause  he  loves  me  so  dearly.  If  it  wasn't  for 
that  I'd  be  very  rebellious  sometimes,  I'm  afraid; 
for  I'm  naturally  very  wilful,  always  wanting  to 
have  my  own  way." 

"Yes;  but  one  would  bear  almost  any  thing 
for  the  sake  of  being  loved  so,"  Marian  said 
with  an  involuntary  sigh  ;  then  suddenly 
changed  the  subject. 

"Miss  Lulu,  wont  you  tell  me  about  the 
celebration  you  were  talking  of  at  breakfast 
and  dinner  to-day  !  I  mean  particularly  why 
Americans  should  make  so  much  of  that 
day  ?  I'm  afraid  you  must  think  I  ought 
to  be  ashamed  of  my  ignorance,  and  I  suppose  I 
ought ;  but  you  must  remember  that  I've  lived 
in  America  only  a  few  years,  and  have  not 
mingled  much  with  native-born  citizens. 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.         239 

"  It  was  a  Mormon  missionary  that  persuaded 
father  and  mother  to  come  over,  and  most  of 
the  people  I've  known  about  here  have  been 
Mormons  from  foreign  lands,  and  they  are  all 
taught  by  the  Mormon  leaders  to  believe  that 
the  United  States  Government  is  the  worst  and 
most  tyrannical  in  the  world,  and  to  hate  it 
accordingly. 

"  So,  of  course,  they  haven't  made  anything 
of  celebrating  the  Fourth  of  July.  I  do  know 
enough  to  be  aware  that  it's  the  patriotic  people 
who  do  that." 

"  We  keep  it  because  it's  the  nation's  birth 
day,"  said  Lulu  ;  "  and  we've  good  reason  to  be 
glad,  and  thankful  to  God,  that  our  nation  was 
born  ;  for  instead  of  our  government  being  the 
worst  and  most  tyrannical,  it  is  the  very  best 
and  freest  in  the  world." 

"  The  nation's  birthday  ?  How  do  you  mean  ? 
I  don't  quite  understand." 

"  It  was  the  day  of  the  signing  of  the  Declar 
ation  of  Independence.  The  Continental  Con 
gress  signed  it. 

"  You  see,  when  the  colonies  began  the  strug 
gle  with  England  that  we  call  the  Revolution 
ary  War,  they  had  not  thought  of  separating 
from  her  (they  loved  her,  and  called  her  the 
mother  country),  but  as  the  fight  went  on  the 
breach  grew  wider  and  wider,  till,  after  a  while, 
the  people  began  to  see  that  it  could  never 


240          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

be  healed  ;  and  that  the  only  thing  to  do,  if 
they  would  be  anything  better  than  slaves  to 
Great  Britain,  was  to  become  a  separate  na 
tion  ;  declare  themselves  free  and  independent, 
and  fight  the  British  till  they  forced  them  to 
go  back  where  they  belonged  and  let  us  alone. 

"  Of  course  the  declaration  had  to  be  made 
and  signed  by  the  leaders  of  the  people,  and 
that  made  us  a  new  nation — one  by  ourselves — 
and  so  we  call  it  the  nation's  birthday  ;  although 
most  of  the  fighting  to  carry  it  out,  and  make 
the  British  and  other  nations  own  that  we  were 
really  what  we  called  ourselves,  had  to  be  done 
afterwards. 

"  It's  quite  a  nice  story  about  the  signing, 
and  if  you  like  I'll  tell  it  to  you  some  time.  To 
morrow,  papa  and  Mr.  Austin  and  Max  and 
Albert  are  all  going  with  a  hunting  party,  and 
I  shall  be  at  home  alone  ;  that  will  give  me  a 
good  opportunity  to  tell  the  story,  if  you  can 
find  time  to  sit  with  me  for  awhile." 

"  Thank  you,  Miss  Lulu,"  said  Marian  ;  "  I 
shall  certainly  try  to  find  the  time,  and  will  be 
very  glad  to  hear  the  story." 

Here  the  conversation  came  to  an  end,  as 
they  were  just  on  the  threshold  of  the  store  to 
which  Marian's  errand  led  her. 

While  she  attended  to  that,  Lulu,  glancing 
curiously  about,  spied  a  box  of  narrow  ribbons 
of  various  colors,  asked  to  be  allowed  to  look  at 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.         241 

them,  inquired  the  price,  and  selecting  a  red,  a 
white,  and  a  blue  piece,  said,  "  You  may  please 
wrap  these  up  for  me,"  and  taking  out  her  purse, 
paid  for  them. 

She  noticed  that  Marian  watched  the  proceed 
ing  with  some  little  surprise  and  curiosity, 
though  she  asked  no  question  and  made  no 
remark. 

"I  suppose  you  are  wondering  what  I  bought 
these  ribbons  for  ?  "  Lulu  said,  as  they  left  the 
store. 

"  Yes,"  replied  Marian,  "  but  still  more  that 
you  should  buy  them  without  asking  permission, 
when  you  couldn't  even  walk  down  the  street 
with  me  till  you  had  asked  your  father  if  you 
might." 

"  Oh,  that  was  quite  a  different  thing  :  "  said 
Lulu.  "  Papa  allows  me  to  spend  my  pocket 
money  as  I  please, — at  least,  within  certain 
bounds.  He  wouldn't  let  me  buy  whiskey  or 
tobacco  or  dime  novels,  of  course,"  she  added, 
with  a  laugh. 

"I  should  think  not,  indeed,"  said  Marian, 
joining  in  the  laugh  ;  "  yet  I  dare  say  he  would 
be  as  likely  to  let  you,  as  you  to  wish  to  do 
so." 

"  Yes  ;  I  can't  say  that  I  have  any  inclina* 
tion  to  spend  my  money  so,  even  to  prove  my 
independence  ;  though,  now  I  come  to  think  of 
it,  I'm  pretty  sure  I  would  be  allowed  to 


:242          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

tobacco  if  it  was  as  a  present  to  some  of  our  old 
colored  people  who  are  very  fond  of  it." 

"  It  must  be  fine  to  have  money  of  your  own 
to  do  as  you  will  with,"  remarked  Marian,  "  I 
never  was  so  fortunate,  but  I  hope  to  earn  for 
myself  some  day.  Poor  mother  has  always  had 
-a  struggling  time,"  she  went  on,  "  and  I  could 
never  have  the  heart  to  take  pocket  money  from 
her,  if  she  offered  it,  but  the  folk  about  town 
say  your  father  is  very,  very  rich,  Miss  Lulu." 

"  Just  say  Lulu,  Marian  ;  you  needn't  call 
me  Miss,"  Lulu  said.  "  I  suppose  it  is  true  that 
papa  is  rich,  but  he  never  says  so,  and  always 
tells  us  he  is  only  the  Lord's  steward,  bound  to 
use  the  money  entrusted  to  him  for  the  up 
building  of  Christ's  cause  and  kingdom,  and 
that  no  one — no  matter  how  rich — has  any  right 
to  be  wasteful,  extravagant,  or  idle.  And  he 
.says  that  not  only  money,  but  time  and  ability 
to  do  anything  useful,  are  talents  entrusted  to 
us  to  be  used  and  increased — the  money  and 
talents,  I  mean,  are  to  be  increased — that  at 
last  the  Lord  ma}'  say  to  us  each,  *  "Well  done, 
.good  and  faithful  servant,  enter  thou  into  the 
joy  of  thy  Lord.'  " 

"  I  think  your  father  must  be  a  very  good, 
Christian  man,"  was  Marian's  answering  re 
mark. 

"  Indeed  he  is  !  "  returned  Lulu  emphatic 
ally,  "he's  always  a  Christian,  always  loving 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          243 

Jesus,  and  trying  his  very  best  to  please  and 
honor  him  by  doing  exactly  as  the  Bible  says." 

The  captain  had  finished  his  correspondence 
and  gone  out  to  mail  his  letters,  and  as  Max, 
too,  was  out,  Lulu  found  no  one  in  their  rooms 
when  she  went  back  to  them  on  her  return  from 
her  walk  with  Marian. 

But  on  the  table  beside  which  her  father  had 
been  sitting  lay  a  pile  of  clothes  fresh  from  the 
iron  ;  just  brought  in  from  the  wash. 

"  There,"  thought  Lulu  to  herself,  "  if  Mam 
ma  Vi  were  here  she  would  soon  take  papa's 
clothes  from  that  pile  and  see  if  there  were  any 
buttons  to  sew  on  or  stockings  to  darn  ;  and  if 
there  were  she'd  sit  right  down  and  attend  to 
it.  She  lets  Christine  or  Alma  attend  to  Max's 
clothes,  but  unless  she  is  sick,  no  one  but  her 
self  must  do  papa's,  because,  as  she  says,  it  is  a 
great  pleasure  to  her  to  care  for  her  husband's 
comfort. 

"  I  always  love  to  do  things  for  papa,  too, 
and  I  like  to  be  kind  and  helpful  to  Max,  for 
he's  a  dear,  kind  brother  to  me.  And  of  course 
my  own  mending  belongs  to  me  ;  so  I'll  just  sit 
down  to  this  pile  of  clothes  and  put  them  all  in 
order." 

She  hastened  to  put  away  her  hat  and  gloves 
and  get  out  her  work-basket,  which  was  thor 
oughly  furnished  with  all  the  needed  articles 
and  implements,  and  when  her  father  came  in 


244          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

he  found  her  seated  in  a  low  chair  between 
table  and  window,  busily  plying  her  needle. 

"  My  little  busy  bee,"  he  said,  regarding  her 
with  a  pleased  smile,  then  bending  down,  kissed 
her  forehead. 

She  laughed  and  held  up  her  rosy  lips  in  mute 
invitation.  He  kissed  them,  too,  then  laying 
his  hand  tenderly  on  her  head,  said,  "  My  little 
girl  looks  quite  matronly.  Are  you  playing  at 
being  Mamma  Vi  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir,  I  am  like  her  in  at  least  one  thing." 

"  What  is  that  ?  " 

"  In  feeling  it  a  pleasure  to  do  anything  for 
you,  sir.  Papa,  I  thought  it  was  just  dreadful 
when  you  wouldn't  let  me  wait  on  you  for  four 
whole  days,  because  I'd  been  disobedient  and 
rebellious." 

"  Yes,  I  know  you  did  ;  and  it  was  hard  for 
me,  too  ;  hard  to  do  without  my  dear  little 
daughter's  loving  services." 

"But  you  denied  yourself  for  my  sake — to 
make  me  good,  because  you  know  no  one  can  be 
happy  who  is  not  good — you  dear  papa  !  "  she 
said,  with  a  grateful  loving  look  up  into  his  face. 

"  Yes,  my  darling,  that  was  exactly  it,"  he 
said,  repeating  his  caresses,  "  and  it  makes  me 
very  happy  that  of  late  I  have  rarely  needed  to 
punish,  or  even  reprove  you.  It  is  so  much 
pleasanter  to  commend  and  reward  my  children 
than  to  punish  them." 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          245 

He  had  drawn  up  a  chair  and  seated  himself 
by  her  side.  "  I  did  better  for  myself  than  I 
was  aware  of  in  bringing  my  eldest  daughter 
rl->ng,"  he  remarked.  "I  had  no  thought  of 
making  use  of  you  to  keep  my  clothes  and 
Max's  in  order." 

"But  you  are  pleased  to  have  me  do  it, 
papa  ?  " 

"lam." 

"Papa,  I  bought  something  when  I  was  at 
the  store  with  Marian.  See  !  "  opening  a  brown 
paper  parcel,  which  she  took  from  the  table  be 
side  her,  and  displaying  the  ribbons. 

"Ah  !  what  use  do  you  expect  to  make  of 
your  purchases  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  Badges  for  the  school  children.  They  are 
the  national  colors,  you  see,  papa." 

"  Yes  ;  it  is  a  good  idea,  and  I  presume  the 
children  will  be  much  pleased.  When  do  you 
propose  to  make  your  badges  ?  " 

"  To-morrow,  papa,  while  you  and  Max  are 
off  on  your  hunting  expedition.  But  I  mean  to 
finish  all  this  mending  first." 

"That's  right.  I  am  glad  you  have  found 
something  to  do  to  keep  you  from  being  lonely 
while  we  are  away.  I  should  like  to  take  you 
along  but  for  exposing  you  to  danger." 

"  Mightn't  I  as  well  be  exposed  to  it  as  Max  ?  " 
she  asked  in  a  playful  tone. 

"  Max  is  older,  and  a  boy,"  he  said.     "  Yo« 


246          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

are  very  fearless,  I  know,  but  women  and  girls 
are  not  so  strong  physically  as  our  sex,  and  it  is 
not  to  be  expected  that  they  can  endure  the 
same  amount  of  exposure  and  fatigue.  You 
could  hardly  be  of  much  assistance  in  fighting  a 
grizzly,  for  instance,"  he  added  laughingly, 
bending  over  her  and  softly  smoothing  her  hair 
as  he  spoke. 

"  No,  sir,"  she  returned,  laughing  a  little ; 
"  I'm  not  fearless  enough  to  enjoy  the  idea  of 
facing  one  of  them.  And  it  frightens  me  to 
think  of  you  and  Max  fighting  one.  Oh,  papa, 
don't  try  it !  " 

"My  child,  would  you  have  your  father  a 
coward  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  No,  sir  ;  oh,  no,  indeed  !  I  know  you  are 
brave,  as  brave  can  be,  and  it  makes  me  very 
proud  ;  but  what's  the  use  of  fighting  bears  ?  " 

"  To  rid  the  country  of  them,  as  dangerous 
enemies  to  settlers.  Also  their  flesh  is  good  for 
food,  and  the  skin,  too  is  valuable.  But  here 
comes  Max,  and  there  is  our  tea-bell.  Put  up 
your  work  and  let  me  lead  you  to  the  table." 

Max  met  them  in  the  hall. 

"  Where  have  you  been,  my  son  !  "  asked  the 
captain. 

"  Out  to  the  mine,  with  Albert,  papa.  You 
know  you  gave  me  permission  to  walk  with  him 
when  I  chose,  provided  we  did  not  gc  farther 
than  that  from  the  town." 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          247 

"  So  I  did  ;  I'm  glad  you  went,  for  I  sbruld 
not  wish  you  to  be  cooped  up  in  the  house  in 
such  weather  as  this." 

They  sat  down  to  the  table,  and  after  the 
blessing  had  been  asked,  Max  began  telling 
about  his  walk. 

"  We  found  the  sun  rather  hot,  going,"  he 
said,  "  but  coming  back  it  was  very  pleasant, 
indeed ;  there  was  a  nice  breeze  from  the 
mountains." 

"  Had  you  any  adventures,"  asked  Lulu. 

"  No,  hardly  that,"  he  answered  with  a  slight 
laugh  ;  "  but  as  we  were  going,  Albert  thought 
he  heard  a  little  child  crying  in  the  bushes,  and 
started  off  to  hunt  for  it.  I  kept  straight  on, 
and  he  was  much  disgusted  with  what  he  called 
my  heartlessness. 

"I  said,  'I  don't  believe  there  is  any  child 
there';  and  he  answered,  'There  is,  then ;  I'm 
certain  of  it,  for  I  heard  it  cry,  and  dare  say  it's 
some  poor  little  thing  that  has  wandered  away 
from  home  and  is  lost.  Didn't  you  hear  it  ?  " 

"Then  I  said,  'I  heard  something,  but  I'm 
pretty  sure  it  wasn't  a  child.  I've  read  that  a 
panther  will  imitate  the  cry  of  a  child  so  that 
almost  any  one  would  be  deceived,  and  hunting 
for  the  child  might  get  so  near  the  panther  that 
it  could  spring  on  him  before  he  could  get  out 
of  its  way,  or  even  knew  it  was  there.  But,  if 
you  think  best,  I'll  go  with  you  into  the  bushes 


248          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

and  make  sure  whether  there  is  a  baby  there  or 
not.' " 

"Oh,  Max,  you  knew  what  it  was  all  the 
time  ;  didn't  you  ?  "  laughed  Lulu. 

"  Yes  ;  but  we  went  and  hunted  thoroughly 
through  the  bushes  without  finding  anything. 
Albert  never  suspected  and  -\Vondered  very  much 
that  we  found  neither  child  nor  panther.  I  pre 
sume  he's  wondering  about  it  yet." 

"  I'm  glad  he  didn't  find  you  out,"  Lulu  said,, 
with  satisfaction  ;  "  because  I  hope  we'll  have 
some  more  fun  with  him.  You'll  try  it  one  these 
evenings  when  we're  all  together  on  the  porch^ 
wont  you,  Max  ?  " 

"  Perhaps  ;  if  I  can  think  of  something. 

"  Albert's  very  full  of  the  bear  hunt  for  to 
morrow,  papa  ;  says  he  wouldn't  miss  it  for  the 
world." 

"Ah  ?    And  how  does  my  boy  feel  about  it ?  " 

"Pretty  much  the  same,  I  believe,  papa," 
Max  answered,  with  a  light  laugh.  "  I'm  sorry 
for  Lu  that  she's  only  a  girl  and  can't  have  the 
pleasure  of  going  along." 

"  I  could  if  papa  would  let  me,"  replied  Lulu 
demurely  ;  "  but  I  wouldn't  be  a  boy  for  the 
sake  of  being  allowed  to  go." 

"  You  think  a  boy's  privileges  are  more  than 
counterbalanced  by  a  girl's  ?  " 

"Yes  ;  papa  takes  me  en  his  knee,  while  you 
can  only  sit  by  his  side  ;  and  I  shall  stay  at 


ELSIB  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          249 

home  with  him,  while  you  will  have  to  go  away 
to  the  Academy  at  Annapolis." 

"  I  go  of  my  own  free  will,"  returned  Max  ; 
"  I  don't  believe  papa  would  compel  me  against 
my  will." 

"  Not  at  all,"  said  the  captain,  "  and  I  am  glad 
you  are  both  so  well  satisfied." 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE  hunters  started  the  next  morning,  shortly 
after  an  early  breakfast. 

"Papa,  when  do  you  expect  to  be  back?" 
asked  Lulu,  as  she  helped  her  father  with  the 
last  of  his  preparations,  some  anxiety  showing 
itself  in  her  tone. 

"  Toward  evening,  daughter  ;  I  can't  set  the 
hour,"  he  answered  cheerily.  "  Better  not  ex 
pect  us  too  soon,  lest  it  should  make  you  feel 
lonely  and  disappointed.  Your  better  plan  will 
be  to  keep  yourself  busy  with  reading,  writing, 
sewing — as  you  prefer,  and  you  may  take  a  walk 
about  town  with  Marian,  if  you  choose,  but 
don't  go  outside  of  it. 

"Perhaps  you  will  find  letters  at  the  post- 
office  after  the  mail  comes  ;  maybe  have  the 
pleasure  of  handing  me  one  from  your  mamma 
when  I  get  back.  Now  good-by,  my  darling." 

He  held  her  in  a  close  embrace  for  a  moment, 
kissing  her  tenderly  two  or  three  times,  released 
her,  and  was  gone. 

Max  was  following,  with  a  hasty  "  Good-by, 
Lu,"  but  she  ran  after  him,  calling,  "  Max,  kiss 
me,  let  me  kiss  you.  Suppose  the  bear  should 
250 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          251 

get  hold  of  you  and  hug  you  so  tight  that  IM 
never  have  a  chance  to  do  it  again,"  she  added, 
laughing  to  hide  an  inclination  to  cry." 

"  Just  imagine  now  that  he  has  hold  of  you,'* 
Max  said,  throwing  his  arms  round  her  and 
squeezing  her  so  hard  that  she  screamed  out, 
"  Oh,  let  me  go  !  you're  bear  enough  for  me  !  " 

"  Bears  must  be  allowed  to  hug,  for  'tis  their 
nature  to,"  he  said,  with  a  laugh,  giving  her 
another  squeeze  and  a  resounding  kiss.  "  Good- 
by,  I  must  be  off  now,  to  catch  up  with  papa.'* 

Lulu  hurried  out  to  the  porch  to  watch  them 
mount  and  ride  away,  her  father  throwing  her 
a  kiss  from  the  saddle,  then  went  back,  rather 
disconsolately,  to  her  work  of  sorting  over  the 
clean  clothes  and  giving  them  the  needed  re- 
pairs. 

She  had  finished  that  and  begun  upon  her 
badges,  when  Marian  came  in  with  some  sewing, 
and  asked  if  she  might  sit  with  her  and  hear  the 
promised  story  of  the  signing  of  the  Declaration. 

"  Yes,  indeed  !  I'll  be  glad  of  your  company 
and  glad  to  tell  the  story  ;  for  it's  one  I  like 
very  much,"  said  Lulu. 

"Thank  you,"  Marian  said,  " but  before  you 
begin,  may  I  ask  what  those  pretty  badges  are 
for?  You  forgot  to  tell  me  what  you  were 
going  to  do  with  the  ribbons." 

"  Oh,  so  I  did  !  These  are  our  national  colors, 
and  I'm  making  badges  of  them  for  the  mi«- 


252          ELSIE  AND  TEE  RAYMONDS. 

sion-school  children  to  wear  on  the  Fourth. 
Fm  glad  you  think  them  pretty.  Now  for  my 
story: 

"  It  was  in  Philadelphia  it  all  happened,  on 
the  4th  of  July,  1776.  But  I  must  go  back  and 
tell  of  something  that  happened  before  that. 

"  Of  course  you  know  about  the  Pilgrims  com 
ing  over  from  England  and  settling  in  the 
wilderness  that  America  was  then,  so  that  they 
might  be  free  to  worship  God  as  they  thought 
right;  and  about  the  settling  of  all  the  others  of 
the  thirteen  colonies;  and  how  King  George  the 
Third  and  the  British  Parliament  oppressed 
them,  taxing  them  without  representation,  pass 
ing  that  hateful  Stamp  Act,  and  so  on,  till  the 
people  couldn't  stand  it  any  longer. 

"  They  just  wanted  to  make  all  they  could  off 
the  American  people  and  give  them  nothing  in 
return.  But  the  Americans  wouldn't  stand  it; 
they  weren't  the  sort  of  stuff  to  be  made  slaves 
of;  so  when  a  tax  was  put  on  tea  they  said  they 
wouldn't  buy  any;  they  would  sooner  go  with 
out  drinking  tea  than  pay  that  tax. 

"Great  ship -loads  were  sent  over,  but  they 
wouldn't  let  it  be  landed,  and  at  last  they  grew 
so  angry  that  they  boarded  a  ship  loaded  with 
tea  and  lying  in  Boston  harbor,  and  threw  the 
chests  of  tea  into  the  water. 

"  That  was  the  Boston  'tea-party  '  that  is  so 
often  spoken  of  in  talking  about  the  struggle 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          25$ 

between  the  colonies  and  Great  Britain.  That 
happened  in  1773;  then  the  next  year — 1774 — 
there  was  another  tea-party  something  like  it, 
though  not  exactly,  in  New  Jersey.  It  was  at 
a  small  place  called  Greenwich  on  the  Cohansey. 

"  A  brig  named  the  Greyhound,  commanded 
by  Captain  Allen,  came  up  the  river  to  Green 
wich,  and  on  the  22d  of  November  landed  her 
load  of  tea  there. 

"  It  was  put  into  a  cellar  not  very  far  from 
the  wharf,  and  somebody  that  saw  it  ran  and 
told  some  one  else. 

"The  news  spread  very  fast.  People  were 
astonished  and  angry;  they  had  never  expected 
such  a  cargo  to  come  there,  and  they  had  no 
notion  of  letting  it  stay ;  for  most  of  them  were 
quite  as  patriotic  as  the  Boston  people. 

"  So  a  party  of  them  disguised  themselves,  as 
sembled  together  in  the  dusk  of  the  evening, 
got  the  chests  of  tea  out  of  that  cellar,  carried 
them  to  an  old  field,  piled  them  up  there  and 
get  them  on  fire;  burned  them  entirely  up." 

"  Quite  as  good  a  way  to  get  rid  of  them  as 
by  throwing  them  into  the  sea,  I  think,"  com 
mented  Marian.  "  But  wasn't  any  one  punished 
for  it  ?  " 

"  Not  that  I  ever  heard  or  read  of,"  replied 
Lulu.  "  I  suppose  nobody  who  would  have 
wanted  to  tell  knew  who  the  men  were  that  did 
the  deed." 


254          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

"I  think  they  had  something  of  the  spirit  of 
our  Scotch  folk  of  early  times,  who  would  never 
submit  to  be  ruled  by  the  English,"  remarked 
Marian. 

"Yes;  papa  has  told  me  that  a  good  many 
who  did  good  service  to  their  country  in  the 
Revolution,  were  of  Scotch,  and  Scotch-Irish 
descent.  He  says  it  is  a  race  that  never  would 
brook  oppression. 

"  Well,  the  next  spring  after  the  burning  of 
the  tea  at  Greenwich — that  is  on  the  19th  of 
April,  1775 — the  war  began — with  the  battle  of 
Lexington.  Still,  most  of  the  Americans  didn't 
think  of  anything  but  forcing  the  English 
government  to  treat  them  better;  but  the  fight 
went  on  ;  the  British  had  no  idea  of  giving  up 
their  oppressive  doings,  and  soon  the  wise  ones 
among  the  Americans  began  to  see  that  there 
was  no  way  to  get  their  rights  but  by  separating 
from  England  and  setting  up  for  themselves; 
and  that  was  what  brought  them  to  writing  and 
signing  the  Declaration  of  Independence." 

"But  who  did  it  ?  the  officers  of  your  army 
who  were  fighting  the  British  ?" 

"  No,  oh,  no  !  it  was  the  Continental  Con 
gress  assembled  at  Philadelphia.  They  ap 
pointed  a  committee  to  draw  up  the  paper,  and 
when  it  was  read  to  them  every  one  voted  for 
it ;  then,  one  after  anothei-,  each  of  the  fifty-si* 
members  present  signed  his  name  to  it. 


,         ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          255 

"It  was  a  very  dangerous  thing  to  do,  for  the 
English  king  and  his  government  would  call  it 
treason,  and  put  the  signers  to  death  if  they 
could  catch  them.  So  the  people  were  quite 
afraid  the  hearts  of  the  congressmen  would  fail 
them  when  it  came  to  the  signing,  and  the  thing 
be  given  up. 

"A  great  crowd  was  gathered  on  the  day  of 
the  signing,  in  the  street  outside  of  the  State 
House,  where  Congress  met,  and  there  they 
waited,  oh,  so  anxiously,  to  hear  that  the  deed 
was  done. 

"  There  was  a  bell  at  the  top  of  the  State 
House,  and  the  ringer  was  there  ready  to  let  the 
crowd  know  by  ringing  the  bell  when  the  sign 
ing  was  done.  He  was  an  old  man,  and  down 
on  the  landing  by  the  stairs  leading  to  the  bel 
fry  sat  a  little  blue-eyed  boy  who  was  to  call 
up  the  news  to  him. 

"  All  was  very  quiet  indoors  and  out ;  the 
crowd  listening  for  the  news — the  old  man  and 
the  little  boy  also — and  the  congressmen  feeling 
very  solemn  because  of  the  great  risk  they  were 
running,  and  the  necessity  for  taking  it  if  they 
would  save  their  country. 

"  There  was  a  death-like  stillness  in  the  room 
while  one  after  another  went  from  his  seat  to 
the  table  and  wrote  his  name  at  the  bottom  of 
the  paper  ;  and  when  all  had  signed,  oh,  how 
still  it  was  for  a  moment  !  till  Franklin  broke 


J56  LSIE  AND    THE  RAYMONDS. 

the  silence  by  saying:  'Now,  gentlemen,  we 
must  all  hang  together,  or  we  shall  surely  hang 
separately  !' 

"  I  suppose  somebody  then  stepped  to  the  door 
and  spoke  to  the  little  boy.  The  old  man  in 
the  belfry  was  saying  sadly  to  himself,  '  They'll 
never  sign  it !  they'll  never  sign  it  ! '  when  all 
at  once  the  little  boy  clapped  his  hands  and 
shouted,  '  Ring  !  ring  ! ' 

"  The  old  man  was  all  ready,  with  the  bell- 
rope  in  his  hands,  and  he  did  ring  without  wait 
ing  one  instant,  and  with  the  first  peal  the  great 
crowd  in  the  street  below  set  up  a  wild  'Hurrah  ! 
hurrah  ! '  almost  going  wild  with  joy, 

"Then  people  farther  off  heard  and  caught 
up  the  shout,  and  I  suppose  not  many  minutes 
had  passed  before  everybody  else  in  the  whole 
city  knew  that  the  Declaration  was  signed." 

"  And  everybody  was  glad  ?  " 

"  Everybody  but  the  Tories,  I  think.  No 
doubt  there  were  some  of  them  even  there." 

"  But  it  seems  to  me  the  rejoicing  was  pre 
mature,  as  they  could  not  be  certain  of  winning 
in  the  fight  that  was  hardly  more  than  begun." 

"  Perhaps  so  ;  but  they  had  been  so  very 
patient  and  borne  repeated  wrongs  till  they  felt 
that  they  could  bear  no  more,  but  would  fight 
on  till  death,  if  victory  didn't  come  before  that. 

"  Oh,  I  must  tell  you  of  a  strange  coincidence 
in  connection  with  the  bell  that  rang  to  tell  that 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          257 

the  deed  was  done  !  It  had  been  cast  years 
before,  and  there  was  a  motto  on  it  that  couldn't 
have  been  made  more  suitable  to  what  it  did  on 
that  4th  of  July,  if  all  the  doings  of  that  day 
had  been  foreseen. 

"Oh,  I'd  forgotten  that  I've  read  that  the 
declaration  was  only  adopted  on  the  4th  of  July 
and  proclaimed  on  the  8th." 

"  But  what  was  the  motto  ?  "  asked  Marian. 

"  It  was  a  verse  from  the  Bible,"  Lulu  an 
swered.  "  '  Proclaim  Liberty  throughout  all 
the  land,  to  all  the  inhabitants  thereof.'  "Wasn't 
it  a  strange  coincidence  !  " 

"  Very,  I  think,"  Marian  replied.  "  I'd  like 
to  see  that  old  bell.  I  suppose  they  keep  it  in 
memory  of  that  time  ?  '* 

"  Yes,  oh  yes,  indeed  !  I've  seen  it ;  when 
we  were  in  Philadelphia  not  very  long  ago, 
Papa  took  me  to  the  State  House  or  Indepen 
dence  Hall — it  gets  both  names — and  showed  me 
the  old  bell  (it  isn't  in  use,  because  it  has  a 
large  crack  in  it  :  but  they  keep  it  for  people  to 
see),  and  the  Declaration — the  very  paper  those 
brave  men  signed — and  the  pen  they  wrote 
their  names  with,  and  a  great  many  other  things 
connected  with  revolutionary  and  colonial  times, 
Did  you  ever  hear  of  Patrick  Henry  ?  " 

"  No,  never.     Who  was  he  ?  " 

"  I  think  you  will  like  to  hear  about  him  be 
cause,  though  born  in  America,  he  was  the  BOB 


258          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

of  a  Scotchman.  He  lived  in  the  times  we've 
been  talking  about,  and  was  one  of  our  very 
patriotic  men  and  greatest  orators.  He  was  a 
Virginian,  and  in  1765 — ten  years  before  the 
Revolutionary  War  began,  and  when  George 
the  Third  was  oppressing  the  colonies  so,  and 
had  the  Stamp  Act  passed — he  belonged  to  the 
House  of  Burgesses. 

"  They  were  debating  about  the  Stamp  Act, 
and  Patrick  Henry  was  wanting  resolutions 
passed  declaring  that  no  one  but  the  House  of 
Burgesses  and  the  governor  had  a  right  to  lay 
taxes  and  imposts  on  that  colony. 

"  Some  of  the  other  members  were  very  much 
opposed  to  his  resolutions  and  grew  very  angry 
and  abusive  toward  him  ;  but  he  wouldn't  give 
up  to  them  ;  he  went  on  with  his  speech  and 
said  some  brave  words  that  startled  even  the 
patriots  and  have  been  famous  words  ever  since. 
They  were  : 

"  '  Caesar  had  his  Brutus,  Charles  the  First  his 
Cromwell,  and  George  the  Third  ' — just  there 
he  was  interrupted  by  cries  of  '  Treason  ! '  trea 
son  ! ' — '  may  profit  by  their  example,'  he  added' 
'If  this  be  treason,  make  the  most  of  it.'" 

"  That  was  fine  !  "  Marian  exclaimed,  her 
eyes  shining.  "  I'm  thinking  he  was  a  worthy- 
descendant  of  some  of  our  Scotch  heroes.  But 
did  they  pass  his  resolutions  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  by  a  majority  of  one." 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          259 

"Ten  years  after  that — just  a  few  weeks 
before  the  battle  of  Lexington,  that  began  the 
war — he  was  talking  in  a  convention  at  Rich 
mond,  in  Virginia.  He  wanted  to  organize  the 
militia  and  make  the  colony  ready  for  defence 
against  Great  Britain  ;  but  some  of  the  others 
were  very  much  opposed. 

"  He  made  a  grand  speech  to  them,  trying  to 
convince  them  that  what  he  wanted  done  was 
the  wisest  thing  they  could  do,  and  in  it  he  said 
some  brave  words  which  I  admire  so  much  that 
I  learned  them  by  heart, — committed  them  to 
memory,  I  suppose  would  be  the  more  proper 
expression." 

"  Oh,  say  them  over  to  me  !  "  entreated  Mar 
ian,  her  eyes  sparkling  with  enthusiasm,  "I 
dearly  love  to  hear  brave,  bold  words  that  speak 
a  determination  to  be  free  from  tyranny  of  man, 
whether  he  would  lord  it  over  soul  or  body,  or 
both." 

"  So  do  I,"  said  Lulu,  "  and  no  one  was  more 
capable  of  saying  such  words  than  Patrick  Hen 
ry.  These  are  the  ones  I  spoke  of. 

"  *  There  is  no  retreat  but  in  submission  and 
slavery.  Our  chains  are  already  forged.  Their 
clanking  may  be  heard  on  the  plains  of  Boston. 
The  next  gale  that  sweeps  from  the  north  will 
bring  the  clash  of  resounding  arms.  I  know 
not  what  course  others  may  take,  but  as  for  mej 
give  me  liberty  or  give  me  death.' 


260          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

"I  think  the  convention  couldn't  hold  out 
against  such  brave  and  eloquent  words,  for  they 
passed  his  resolutions  without  any  one  saying  j 
word  against  it." 

"I'm  proud  that  he  was  a  Scotchman's  son,' 
Marian  said. 

"  And  I  that  he  was  a  native-born  American,' 
said  Lulu. 

"And  your  government  is  really  a  free  one 
though  the  Mormons  say  so  much  against  it  ?  * 
queried  Marian. 

"  Yes,  indeed  !  But  I  wish  it  had  broken  up 
Mormonism  long  ago." 

"  So  do  I,"  responded  Marian,  almost  fiercely, 
"  Yes,  before  it  had  time  to  get  well  started  and 
could  send  out  its  missionaries  to  deceive  folks- 
in  other  countries  and  persuade  them  to  come 
over  here,  where  the  women,  at  least,  are  noth 
ing  but  slaves  ! " 

Lulu  looked  at  her  in  surprise  and  sympathy, 
for  she  detected  in  her  tones  a  bitter  sense  of 
personal  wrong. 

"  Was  that  how  you  came  to  emigrate  to  this- 
country,  Marian  ?  "  she  asked.  "  Are  you  and 
your  mother  Mormons  ?" 

"  Pm  no  Mormon  !  "  exclaimed  the  girl,, 
through  her  clenched  teeth.  "  But  they  made 
one  of  my  father,  and  led  him  to  break  my 
poor  mother's  heart,  so  that  I  hate  him — I 
that  used  to  love  him  next  to  her — and  would 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          261 

never  set  eyes  on  him  again  if  I  could  help 
myself." 

"  Hate  your  own  father  ! "  cried  Lulu,  aghast 
at  the  very  idea.  "  Oh,  how  can  you  ?  " 

"He  isn't  like  yours,"  Marian  returned,  in 
qnivering  tones:  "if  he  was  I'd  love  the  very 
ground  he  walks  on.  He  used  to  be  kind,  but 
now — he's  cruel  and  heartless  as — I'd  almost  said 
the  father  o'  lies  himself  ! " 

"  Oh,  Marian,  what  has  he  done  to  grieve  your 
mother  so  ?  " 

"  What  the  Mormons  teach  that  every  man 
ought  to  do  if  he  wants  a  high  place  in  heaven; 
taken  other  wives." 

"  Why  !  "  exclaimed  Lulu,  "  that's  very,  very 
wicked  !  They  send  men  to  the  penitentiary 
for  doing  it." 

"  They  deserve  worse  than  that,"  said  Marian, 
her  eyes  flashing.  "  I'm  no  Mormon,  I  say 
again.  Do  you  know  they  teach  the  women 
that  they  can't  go  to  heaven  unless  they  have 
been  married  ?  " 

"  I  know  better  than  that,"  Lulu  said  emphat 
ically  ;  "  for  the  Bible  says  '  Believe  on  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  and  thou  shalt  be  saved.* 
And  I  know  some  very  good  Christian  ladies 
who  have  never  been  married.  I  don't  see  how 
anybody  who  believes  the  Bible  can  be  a  Mor 
mon." 

"  No,  nor  I,"  said  Marian;  "  for  a  good  many 


262         ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS, 

things  they  say  one  must  believe,  are  directly 
the  opposite  of  what  the  Bible  says.  For  in 
stance,  that  the  blood  of  Christ  doesn't  atone 
for  all  sin,  but  some  sins  have  to  be  atoned  for 
by  shedding  the  sinner's  own  blood.  I  think 
that — beside  contradicting  the  Soriptures — it  is 
the  same  thing  as  saying  that  Jesus'  blood  is  not 
of  sufficient  value  to  pay  for  all  the  wickedness 
men  have  done,  and  buy  their  salvation,  if  only 
they  choose  to  accept  it  as  a  free  gift  at  his 
hands,  believe  in  him,  and  love  him  with  all 
their  hearts,  so  that  they  will  be  his  servants 
forever." 

"  But,"  said  Lulu,  "  I  know  that  is  the  way 
the  Bible  tells  us  we  may  be  saved,  and  the  only 
way,  and  I'll  believe  the  Bible — God's  own 
word — though  every  human  creature  should 
contradict  it." 

"  So  will  I,"  Marian  said  firmly.  "  I'll  never 
forget  the  good  teaching  of  my  minister  and 
Sunday-school  teacher  in  old  Scotland.  Every 
thing  they  taught  they  proved  by  Scripture  ; 
and  from  them  I  learned  that  man's  teachings 
are  not  worthy  of  the  smallest  consideration,  if 
they  do  not  agree  with  the  teachings  of  God's 
word." 

"  And  I've  learned  the  same  from  papa. 
How  good  our  Heavenly  Father  was  to  give  us 
His  holy  word,  that  we  might  learn  from  it  just 
what  he  would  have  have  us  believe  and  do  !  I 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          263 

feel  sorry  for  the  poor  heathen  who  haven't  it, 
and  I  want  to  do  all  I  can  to  send  it  to  them." 

"  Have  you  ever  read  anything  of  Scotland's 
martyrs,  who  laid  down  their  lives  for  the  love 
of  Jesus  and  his  word  ?  "  asked  Marian. 

"Yes,  indeed  ;  and  papa  has  told  me  about 
them ;  as  well  as  of  martyrs  who  suffered  in 
other  parts  of  the  world.  How  strange  it  is 
that  men  should  want  to  persecute  each  other 
so,  and  pretend  they  do  it  to  please  God,  who 
is  so  kind  and  merciful.  You  know  the  Bible 
says  he  proclaimed  himself  to  Moses  : 

"'The  Lord,  the  Lord  God,  merciful  and 
gracious,  long  suffering,  and  abundant  in  good 
ness  and  truth,  keeping  mercy  for  thousands, 
forgiving  iniquity  and  transgression  and  sin, 
and  that  will  by  no  means  clear  the  guilty.' " 

"  How  do  you  explain  that  ?  "  asked  Marian  ; 
"  I  mean  the  not  clearing  the  guilty,  yet  for 
giving  iniquity,  transgression  and  sin  ?  " 

"  For  Jesus'  sake,  you  know,"  returned  Lulu. 
"  Papa  explained  it  to  me,  saying  '  God's  law 
does  not  call  him  guilty  for  whom  Christ  has 
borne  the  punishment." 

"  Ah,  yes,  I  see  ;  Christ  takes  the  sinner's 
guilt  and  gives  him  of  his  righteousness  ;  and 
to  try  to  add  some  of  our  own  is  like  fastening 
filthy  rags  on  a  beautiful  white  wedding  gar 
ment  ;  and  what  better  is  it  to  try  to  pour 
some  of  the  sinner's  own  polluted  blood  into 


264          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

that  pure  fountain  opened  for  sin  and  unclean* 
ness?" 

"Not  one  bit  better,  and  Mormonism  cannot 
be  a  true  religion  ;  indeed,  there  can  be  but  one 
true  religion,  I  know — that  which  teaches  salva 
tion  through  the  blood  and  righteousness  of 
Christ." 

But  the  dinner  hour  was  approaching,  and 
Marian  found  she  must  go  to  her  mother's  as 
sistance. 

Lulu  spent  most  of  the  afternoon  alone,  bnt 
amused  herself  with  writing  letters  to  Evelyn 
and  Gracie.  Marian  went  with  her  to  the  post- 
office  to  mail  them  when  done,  and  to  Lulu's 
great  satisfaction  there  were  letters  from  home 
for  her  father,  for  Max,  and  for  herself. 

"  One  of  these  is  from  Mamma  Vi,"  she  said 
to  Marian,  "  and  I'm  so  glad  I  shall  have  the 
pleasure  of  handing  it  to  papa  ;  of  course  he's 
always  very  glad  to  get  her  letters." 

"  Your  mamma,  did  you  say  ?  "  asked  Marian. 

"My  young  step-mother,"  explained  Lulu. 
"  She's  not  old  enough  to  be  my  own  mamma. 
My  mother  had  been  dead  two  or  three  years 
when  papa  married  again." 

"  It's  all  right,  then,"  Marian  commented, 
with  some  bitterness  of  tone,  thinking  of 
Mormon  teaching  that  a  man  may  have 
many  wives  living  at  the  same  time,  "  I  never 
beard  of  any  religion  that  teaches  it  is  wrong 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.         265 

for  a  man  to  marry  again  after  his  wife  ii 
dead." 

They  had  entered  the  house  and  passed  on 
into  the  sitting-room.  At  that  moment  there 
was  the  sound  of  horses'  hoofs  on  the  street  and 
some  seemed  to  pause  at  Mrs.  McAlpine's  gate. 

"  Oh,  I  do  believe  they've  come  back  ! "  cried 
Lulu,  in  joyous  tones, "  Yes,  I  hear  papa's  voice,** 
and  she  ran  to  meet  him,  Marian's  eyes  follow 
ing  her  with  a  wistful,  longing  look. 

The  captain  had  just  stepped  across  the 
threshold  as  his  little  daughter  came  flying  to 
him,  crying,  "  Oh,  papa,  I'm  so  glad  you're  safely 
back  again  !  I  was  so  afraid  you  might  get 
hurt." 

He  bent  down,  caught  her  in  his  arms,  and 
giving  her  a  loving  kiss,  said,  "  Yes,  I  have 
been  taken  care  of  and  brought  back  unhurt. 
My  little  girl  should  have  trusted  me  to  our 
Heavenly  Father's  care,  and  not  tormented  her 
self  with  useless,  unavailing  fears." 

"It  was  foolish  and  wrong,"  she  acknowl 
edged.  Then  catching  sight  of  her  brother, 
44  Oh,  Maxie,  I'm  glad  to  see  you  safe,  too  ! " 

"  Are  you  ?  "  he  returned,  in  a  sportive  tone. 
**  I  was  beginning  to  wonder  if  it  made  any  par 
ticular  difference  to  you." 

"  Oh,  did  you  see  any  bears  ?  "  she  asked,  as 
they  moved  on  into  their  own  rooms. 

"  Yes,"  answered  her  father,  and  Max  added. 


266          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"Papa  shot  him;  right  through  the  heart,  so 
that  he  fell  dead  instantly." 

"  I  was  almost  sure  papa  would  be  the  one  to 
shoot  him,"  Lulu  exclaimed  with  a  look  of  tri 
umph.  Then  with  a  sudden  change  of  tone, 
"  Papa,  you're  very  tired,  aren't  you  ?  " 

"  Rather  tired,  daughter,  and  have  a  slight 
headache,"  he  answered.  "  Were  there  any 
letters  for  me  ?  " 

He  was  taking  off  his  coat,  preparatory  to  rid 
ding  himself  of  the  dust  gathered  during  his  ride. 

"  Yes,  sir ;  one  of  them  from  Mamma  Vi," 
replied  Lulu.  "  Papa,  won't  you  sit  down  in 
this  easy-chair  while  you  read  it,  and  let  me 
stand  beside  you  and  brush  your  hair  gently  to 
see  if  that  won't  help  your  head  ?  " 

"  Yes,  dear  child  ;  I  shall  enjoy  having  you 
do  so,  if  you  do  not  find  it  too  wearisome." 

"  It  won't  tire  me  at  all,  papa,"  she  asserted 
with  warmth,  "  and  there's  nothing  else  I  enjoy 
«o  much  as  doing  something  to  make  you  com 
fortable." 

"My  own  dear  little  loving  daughter,"  he 
responded,  giving  her  a  look  that  filled  her  heart 
with  gladness. 

Max,  no  less  ready  than  Lulu  to  wait  upon 
their  father,  had  seized  a  clothes-brush  and  the 
captain's  coat,  and  carrying  them  to  the  win 
dow  was  giving  the  coat  a  vigorous  shaking  and 
brushing. 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.         267 

"  Thank  you,  my  dear  boy,"  the  captain  said, 
as  Max  presently  brought  the  garment  to  him, . 
looking  much  better  for  what  it  had  just  gone 
through  ;  "  truly  I  think  no  man  was  ever  more 
fortunate  in  his  children  than  I  am  in  mine." 

"  If  there's  anything  good  about  our  conduct, 
papa,  I  think  your  training  deserves  all  the 
credit  of  it,"  replied  Max  ;  "  your  training  and 
your  example,  I  should  have  said,"  he  corrected 
himself. 

"  If  so  it  is  by  God's  blessing  upon  it  all  in  the 
fulfillment  of  his  promise,  '  Train  up  a  child  in 
the  way  he  should  go,  and  when  he  is  old  he 
will  not  depart  from  it.'  I  hope,  my  children, 
you  will  never  depart  from  it  in  youth  or  in 
later  days." 

"I  hope  not,  papa,"  said  Lulu.  "Now 
please  sit  down  and  let  me  try  to  help  your  poor 
head.  I'll  brush  very  softly.  There,  how  does 
that  feel  ?  "  after  passing  the  brush  gently  over 
his  hair  two  or  three  times. 

"Very  soothing,  darling.  You  may  go  on 
while  I  open  and  read  my  letters." 

There  were  several  home  letters,  and  they 
enjoyed  them  together  as  usual,  the  captain 
reading  aloud,  while  Lulu  continued  her  labor 
of  love,  and  Max  attended  to  his  own  toilet — 
brushing  his  clothes  and  hair  and  washing  hands 
and  face.  There  was  nothing  of  the  dandy 
about  the  lad,  but  he  liked  to  be  neat ;  for  his 


268          ELSIE  AND  TEE  RAYMONDS, 

own  comfort,  and  because  it  pleased  his  father 
to  see  him  so. 

By  the  time  the  letters  were  disposed  of  and 
the  tea-bell  sounded  out  its  summons,  the  cap 
tain  was  able  to  assure  Lulu  that  his  head  was 
almost  entirely  relieved.  He  gave  the  credit  to 
Ler  efforts,  and  rewarded  her  with  a  kiss. 


CHAPTER  XVH 

"  GOOD-EVENIN',  Cap'n.  So  they  tell  me  aa 
'twas  you  shot  and  killed  that  big  b'ar  ?  " 

The  speaker  was  an  elderly  man,  in  his  shirt 
sleeves,  and  with  a  pipe  in  his  mouth,  who 
stepped  into  the  porch  and  took  a  seat  near 
Captain  Raymond  as  he  made  the  remark. 

"  I  reckon  now  we'll  have  to  own  that  yer  a 
better  marksman  than  most  o'  the  fellers  about 
these  here  diggin's,"  he  added,  puffing  away  at 
his  pipe. 

"  That  does  not  follow,  by  any  means,  Mr. 
Riggs,"  returned  the  captain  modestly.  "I 
happened  to  get  the  best  opportunity  to  aim  at 
a  vital  part.  That  was  all." 

"  Well,  now,  I'll  say  fer  you  that  you  don't 
seem  to  be  noways  stuck  up  about  it,  an'  I've 
aeen  fellers  as  proud  as  a  peacock  over  a  smaller 
Btreak  o'  luck  (or  maybe  'twas  skill)  than  that. 
But  you're  a  lucky  man,  sir  ;  nobody  kin  deny 
that,  seein'  how  this  ere  tract  o'  land  that  they 
tell  me  ye  bought  for  a  mere  trifle,  has  riz  in 
value." 

"Yes,  I  have  been  very  fortunate  in  that  and 
many  other-things/'  replied  the  captain,  with  a 


2 TO          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

glance  at  his  son  and  daughter,  seated  near,  that 
seemed  to  include  them  among  the  blessings 
that  had  been  granted  him,  "  though  wealth  has 
sometimes  proved  a  curse  rather  than  a  blessing 
to  its  owner." 

"  It's  a  curse  as  most  folks  is  glad  to  git," 
laughed  the  old  man,  "  and  I  tell  you  I  was  wild 
with  joy  when  it  fell  to  my  lot  to  come  upon  the 
biggest  nugget  as  has  ever  been  seen  in  these 
parts.  I  began  life  poor,  and  never  had  no 
eddication  to  speak  of,  but  I've  more  money 
now  than  half  the  fellers  that's  rubbed  their 
backs  agin'  a  college." 

"  But  education  has  other  uses  than  enabling 
a  man  to  accumulate  wealth.  Also,  there  are 
things  that  contribute  more  to  one's  happiness 
than  money.  How  many  millions  do  you  sup 
pose  would  tempt  me  to  part  with  my  son  or 
daughter,  for  instance  ?  "  and  with  the  question 
the  captain  turned  his  gaze  upon  his  children, 
his  eyes  full  of  fatherly  pride  and  affection. 

"  Well,  Cap'n,  I  don't  s'pose  you'd  be  for 
eellin'  of  'em  fer  no  price,"  returned  the  old 
man,  with  a  grin.  "  They're  a  likely  lookin'  lot, 
and  you've  plenty  o*  the  evil  fur  them  and 
yourself,  too." 

Lulu,  mistaking  the  old  man's  meaning,  shot 
an  angry  glance  at  him,  moved  nearer  to  her 
father,  and  slipped  her  hand  into  his. 

Riggs  observed  it  with  a  laugh.     "  I  wasn't 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.         271 

•ayin'  nothin'  agin  your  dad,  miss,"  he  said.  "I 
was  only  referrin'  to  the  way  folks  has  o'  callin* 
money  the  root  o'  all  evil ;  but  I  obsarve  there*s 
precious  few  on  'era  that  isn't  glad  to  git  all  he 
kin  lay  his  hands  on." 

"  Yes,"  said  the  captain  ;  "  but  do  you  know 
•where  they  get  that  idea  ?  " 

"  Well,  now,  they  do  tell  me  there's  Scripter 
fer  it." 

"  That's  a  mistake,  my  friend ;  the  Bible 
Bays,  '  the  love  of  money  is  the  root — or  a  root — 
of  all  evil.'  But  it  does  not  say  it  of  money 
itself  ;  it  is  a  very  good  thing,  if  honestly  got 
and  put  to  right  uses." 

"  And  what  do  you  call  right  uses  ?  " 

"  '  Providing  things  honest  in  the  sight  of  all 
men,'  relieving  the  wants  of  the  destitute,  help 
ing  every  good  cause,  and  especially  sending 
the  light  of  the  gospel  into  all  the  dark  places 
of  the  earth." 

"  Well,  sir,  that's  purty  good  doctnns,  and  I 
rayther  think  ye're  livin'  up  to  it,  too,  by  all  I 
hear. 

"  As  for  me,  I've  been  a  hard-workin'  man  all 
my  days,  'cept  since  I  come  upon  that  are  nug 
get,  and  I  'low  to  take  my  ease  fer  the  rest  o' 
my  days.  I'm  goin'  ter  fix  up  my  house  as  fine 
as  I  know  how.  My  gal  she  says  'taint  nowheres 
big  'no  ugh  fer  rich  folks,  and  I'm  goin'  to  build 
a  condition  to  it  with  a  portfolio  at  the  back." 


272          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  What's  that  ?  he  !  he  !  never  heard  o'  such 
a  thing  ! "  cried  a  squeaky  little  voice  that 
seemed  to  come  from  behind  the  old  man's  chair. 

He  sprang  up  and  turned  round,  asking  in  a 
startled  tone,  "Who's  that  ?  who  spoke?  Why, 
why,  why  !  where's  the  feller  gone  to  ?  "  rolling 
his  eyes  in  wild  astonishment,  as  he  perceived 
that  no  one  was  there. 

"  Where  are  your  eyes,  man  ?     Here  I  am." 

It  was  the  same  voice,  now  coming  appar 
ently  from  behind  a  large  tree  growing  a  few 
feet  from  the  porch,  its  spreading  branches 
reaching  to,  and  partly  resting  upon  its  roof. 

"  Humph  !  "  ejaculated  Mr.  Riggs,  hurrying 
down  the  porch  steps  and  round  to  the  farther 
side  of  the  tree,  "  What  are  you  up  to,  you  ras 
cal  ?  " 

"  I'm  no  rascal,  sir.  What  do  you  call  me 
that  for?  "  queried  the  voice,  sounding  as  if  the 
speaker  was  making  the  circuit  of  the  tree,  keep 
ing  always  on  the  side  farthest  from  the  old 
man  who  was  pursuing  him. 

"  You  were  making  fun  o'  me,  that's  why  I 
call  you  a  rascal,  sir,"  panted  Riggs. 

"  Oh  no,  sir  ;  I  was  only  wanting  to  know 
what  your  conditions  and  portfolios  were  ;  such 
odd  things  to  talk  of  adding  to  a  house." 

"  Odd,  indeed  I  I  reckon  you'll  sing  another 
song  when  you  see  'em.  But  where  under  the 
«un  are  you  ?  " 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          273 

*  Here,  right  up  here." 

The  voice  now  seemed  to  come  from  among 
the  branches  overhead. 

"  Well,  if  you  ain't  the  spryest  rogue  ever  I 
see  !  I've  a  notion  to  climb  after  you  and  throw 
you  down." 

"  Come  ahead  then  ;  who's  afraid  ?  "  the  sen 
tence  ended  in  a  mocking  laugh. 

"I'll  find  a  stone,  and  I  guess  that'll  fetch 
ye,"  muttered  Riggs,  stooping  and  feeling  about 
on  the  ground. 

"  Ho,  ho  !  better  be  careful ;  you  might  hap 
pen  to  break  a  window.  Good-by  ;  I'm  off." 

The  voice  came  from  the  roof  this  time,  and 
was  immediately  followed  by  a  sound  as  of 
scrambling  and  of  shuffling  footsteps  ;  at  first, 
near  at  hand,  then  gradually  dying  away  in  the 
distance. 

Meanwhile  the  captain  was  fairly  shaking 
with  suppressed  mirth,  and  Lulu  nearly  con 
vulsed  with  her  efforts  to  control  an  inclination 
to  burst  into  uproarious  laughter.  Max  laughed 
a  little  when  Riggs  was  talking,  but  was  sober 
as  a  judge  when  the  strange  voice  answered. 

Riggs  came  stumbling  up  into  the  porch  again, 
and  dropping  into  his  chair,  panted  out,  "  Well, 
if  that  isn't  the  beatenest  thing  ever  I  hearn 
tell  on  !  how  that  fellar  could  git  away  so — 
keepin'  out  o'  sight  all  the  time — is  more'n  I 
can  understand.  I  thought  I  knowed  every 


274          ELSIE  AND  TEE  RAYMONDS. 

body  about  these  diggins,  but  that  there  woice 
didn't  belong  to  none  on  'em.  It  sounded  like 
the  woice  of  an  oldish  man,  but  the  villain  sar- 
tainly  did  skedaddle  equal  to  any  youngster  ever 
I  see.  Did  ye  ketch  sight  o'  him,  cap'n?" 

"  I  saw  no  one  but  ourselves,"  returned  Cap 
tain  Raymond,  in  a  quiet  tone. 

The  four  had  had  the  porch  to  themselves, 
the  other  boarders  being  out.  the  McAlpine's  at 
supper.  But  at  this  moment  the  gate  opened 
and  several  gentlemen — Mr.  Short  and  Mr.  Aus 
tin  among  them — came  in.  Most  of  them  had 
taken  part  in  the  hunt  that  day,  one  or  two 
others  were  old  hunters  who  were  interested  in 
the  affair  and  desirous  to  talk  it  over  with  the 
captain.  Also  to  tell  of  past  experiences  of  their 
own. 

There  were  stories  told  of  encounters  with 
panthers,  bears,  deer,  buffaloes,  and  smaller 
game ;  all  interesting,  some  amusing,  some 
thrilling  because  of  danger  or  death  narrowly 
escaped. 

One  told  by  a  very  old  man  whose  business 
had  been  hunting  and  trapping  in  the  early  days 
when  great  herds  of  buffaloes  roamed  over  the 
plains  of  the  far  West,  was  both  thrilling  and 
mirth-provoking. 

He  said  that  on  one  occasion  he  had  fallen  in 
with  a  company  of  young  army  officers  who 
were  very  desirous  to  shoot  one  buffalo  or  more  j 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          275 

they  must  have  a  taste  of  the  sport,  however 
dangerous. 

"  And  it  is  mighty  dangerous,"  be  went  on, 
"mighty  dangerous,  as  I  told  'em.  They're 
shy  critters,  them  buffaloes,  but  if  you  wound 
one  and  don't  kill  him,  he's  very  apt  to  turn  and 
charge  head  down,  gore  you  with  his  big  horns, 
toss  you  up,  and  when  you  come  down  again, 
stamp  you  to  death  with  his  heavy  hoofs. 

"  But  those  young  chaps  wasn't  to  be  skeared 
out  o'  the  notion  ;  bein'  soldiers,  they  was 
bound  to  show  themselves  afeard  o'  nothing,  I 
'spose.  So  I  led  'em  along  the  buffalo  tracks 
to  one  o'  the  critters'  drinkin'  places,  and,  sure 
enough,  we  found  a  big  herd  gathered  round  it. 
They  was  to  windward  of  us,  but  we'd  hardly 
come  up  with  'em  when  by  sight  or  scent  some 
of  'em  become  aware  of  our  vicinity,  and  off 
started  the  whole  herd,  we  after  'em. 

"  One  young  officer  (I  furgit  his  name  now) 
had  a  swifter  horse  than  the  others,  and  presently 
he  got  near  enough  the  hindermost  ones  to  send 
a  bullet  into  a  big  bull.  The  critter  was  hurt 
purty  bad,  but  not  killed  by  a  good  bit;  so 
round  he  wheels  and  charges  toward  the  feller 
that  had  hit  him.  He  put  spurs  to  his  horse 
and  it  was  a  race  fer  life,  now  I  tell  you. 

"  And  to  make  matters  worse,  somehow  the 
man  lost  his  balance,  or  the  saddle  turned,  and 
there  he  was  a-hangin'  with  one  foot  in  the 


276          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

stirrup  and  clingin*  to  the  horse's  neck  with  hii 
left  arm,  the  pistol  in  his  right  hand,  the  buffalo 
comin'  up  on  t'  other  side  o'  the  horse,  and  it  a 
runnin'  like  mad. 

"  Fer  a  bit  it  seemed  the  poor  young  chap 
would  never  come  out  o'  that  alive,  but  one  o' 
his  mates  put  another  bullet  into  the  buffalo  so 
he  staggered  and  fell  dead  just  as  it  seemed 
there  wasn't  no  escape  for  horse  or  man;  and 
somehow  the  feller  had  got  back  into  his  saddle 
in  another  minute,  though  the  horse  was  still 
tearin'  over  the  praries  at  a  thunderin'  pace. 

"  So  it  all  ended  well,  after  all  ;  he'd  killed  a 
buffalo — leastways  he  and  the  feller  that  fired 
the  last  shot  into  the  critter — and  'scaped  with 
out  no  hurt  worse'n  a  purty  bad  scare. 

"  But  here  comes  the  fun  o'  the  thing.  He  told 
us  he'd  about  give  himself  up  fer  lost  when  he 
found  hisself  hangin'  by  the  stirrup  and  the 
horse's  neck,  and  that  mad  buffalo  bull  after 
him,  bellowing  and  pawin'  up  the  ground  and 
comin'  on  as  if  he'd  a  mind  to  gore  and  toss 
man  and  beast  both,  so  he  thinkin'  there  wasn't 
no  earthly  help  for  him,  concluded  he'd  better 
fall  to  prayin',  but  when  he  tried  he  couldn't 
fer  the  life  o'  him  think  of  nothin'  to  say  but 
the  words  his  mother'd  taught  him  when  he  was 
a  leetle  shaver,  '  Now  I  lay  me  down  to  sleep,* 
and  they  didn't  seem  no  ways  appropriate  ta 
that  perticlar  occasion. 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          277 

"  No  ;  I'm  wrong  thar  ;  he  did  say  that, 
finally,  somethin'  else  come  into  his  head,  but  it 
warn't  much  improvement  on  t'  other  ;  it  wa§ 
the  fust  words  o'  the  blessin'  his  father  wa* 
used  to  ask  afore  eatin'.  «  Fer  what  we  are 
about  to  receive  make  us  truly  thankful.' " 

When  the  laugh  that  followed  the  old 
hunter's  story  had  subsided  Mr.  Austin  re- 
marked.  "  That  goes  to  show  the  folly  and 
and  danger  of  neglecting  prayer  on  ordinary 
occasions, — one  is  not  prepared  to  employ  it  in 
emergencies." 

"  True  as  preachin,'  sir,"  replied  the  hunter. 
Then,  rising,  he  bade  good-night,  saying  he  was 
used  to  early  hours,  and  thought  it  likely  the 
gentlemen  who  had  been  out  that  day  would 
feel  ready  to  go  to  bed . 

At  that  the  others  followed  his  example,  and 
the  captain  and  his  children  went  to  their  own 
rooms. 

"  What  a  funny  old  man  that  Mr.  Riggs  is  !  " 
remarked  Lulu,  laughing  at  the  remembrance  of 
his  talk  that  evening.  "  Papa,  what  did  he  mean 
when  he  said  he  was  going  to  build  a  condition 
to  his  house  with  a  portfolio  at  the  back '  ?  " 

"  An  addition  with  a  portico,  I  suppose." 

"  And  he  couldn't  imagine  who  or  where  the 
fellow  was  that  laughed  at  him.  Max,  you  did 
that  splendidly  ! " 

"  I  did  it  ?  "  exclaimed  Max,  in  astonishment 


278         ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

so  well  feigned  that  for  an  instant  8he  doubted 
the  correctness  of  her  surmise  ;  though  before 
it  had  almost  amounted  to  certainty. 

But  the  next  moment  she  laughed  merrily, 
saying,  "  Oh,  you  needn't  pretend  innocence  !  " 
for  I'm  sure  you  were  the  naughty  fellow. 
Didn't  he  do  it  well,  papa  ?  " 

"Very,  I  thought,"  replied  their  father,  re 
garding  his  son  with  a  proudly  affectionate 
smile. 

"  Papa,  shall  I  call  you  dad  ?  "  asked  Lulu 
merrily,  taking  possession  of  his  knee  and  put 
ting  her  arm  round  his  neck. 

"  No,  I  shall  think  you  very  disrespectful  if 
you  do.  You  may  say  either  papa  or  father, 
but  I  shall  answer  to  no  other  titles  from  you — 
unless  I  should,  some  time  when  you  have  been 
very  naughty,  forbid  you  to  call  me  anything 
but  Captain  Raymond." 

"  Oh,  papa,  dear,  don't  ever  do  that  ?  "  she 
pleaded,  hugging  him  tight,  "  I  think  it  would 
be  a  worse  punishment  than  you  have  ever  given 
me ;  for  it  would  seem  as  if  you  were  saying, 
'  You  don't  belong  to  me  any  longer  ;  I  wont 
have  you  for  my  own.' " 

"  No,  my  darling,"  be  returned,  holding  her 
close,  "  I  shall  never  say  that,  however  ill  you 
may  behave." 

"  And  I  do  mean  to  be  good  ;  always  obedient, 
and  never  in  a  passion  again  ;  but  I  can't  be 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          279 

lure  that  I  shall  ;  it's  sometimes  so  much  easier 
to  be  naughty." 

"  Yes,  sad  to  relate,  we  all  find  it  so,"  he 
sighed.  "What  a  happy  place  heaven  will  be  ! 
for  when  we  get  there  we  shall  have  no  more 
inclination  to  sin,  but  shall  be  always  basking 
in  the  sunshine  of  God's  love  and  favor." 

"Yes,  papa  ;  being  so  happy  when  you  are 
entirely  pleased  with  me  helps  me  to  understand 
how  happy  we  shall  all  be  when  we  are  with 
our  Heavenly  Father  and  he  smiles  on  us  and 
has  no  fault  to  find  with  us.  I  like  that  Bible 
verse,  '  Like  as  a  father  pitieth  his  children,  so 
the  Lord  pitieth  them  that  fear  him,'  because  I 
know  you  pity  and  love  me  when  I'm  in  trouble, 
even  when  I've  brought  it  on  myself  by  being 
naughty." 

"  I  do,  indeed,  my  child  ;  and  God's  love  for 
his  children  is  infinitely  greater  than  that  of  any 
earthly  father  for  his." 

"  It  seems  to  me,"  Max  remarked,  "  that  if 
that  officer  the  old  hunter  told  about  had  been 
used  to  thinking  of  God  as  his  kind,  loving 
Father,  and  praying  to  him,  it  would  have  been 
easy  enough  for  him  to  ask  for  help  when  in 
such  danger." 

"  I  think  you  are  quite  right,"  his  father  said ; 
"  and  now,"  opening  the  Bible,  "  we  will  read  a 
portion  of  his  word,  then  ask  for  his  kind,  pro 
tecting  care  while  we  sleec  " 


CHAPTER  XVIIL 

MB.  SHORT  took  great  interest  in  the  plans 
and  preparations  for  celebrating  the  Fourth,  and 
was  quite  anxious  that  "the  captain's  young 
folks  "  should  have  their  every  wish  in  regard  to 
them  satisfied. 

Also  he  thought  it  would  be  a  fine  thing  to 
give  them  an  agreeable  surprise.  He  had  a 
private  consultation  with  Captain  Raymond,  and 
one  result  was  that  Max  and  Lulu  were  unex 
pectedly  roused  from  sleep  at  sunrise  of  the  im 
portant  day  by  the  firing  of  cannon  and  the 
ringing  of  all  the  church  bells,  while  at  the  same 
moment  a  flag  was  flung  to  the  breeze  from 
every  public  building. 

"  Oh,  it's  the  Fourth,  the  glorious  Fourth  !  " 
cried  Lulu,  springing  out  of  bed  and  running  to 
her  window.  "  It's  a  lovely  day,  too  ;  and  there 
are  flags  flying.  Papa,"  she  called,  "is  it  too 
early  for  me  to  get  up  ?  " 

"  No,"  he  answered,  "  not  if  you  wish  to  ; 
Max  and  I  are  going  to  rise  now.  You  may 
close  your  door  and  dress  yourself  for  the  day." 

She  made  haste  with  her  toilet,  arraying  her- 
280 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.          281 

self  in  white,  which  she  considered  the  most 
suitable  thing  for  the  "glorious  Fourth,"  and 
adding  one  of  her  badges  to  her  adornment. 

Her  father  smiled  approval  when  she  came  to 
him  for  the  usual  good-morning  caress. 

"  My  little  girl  looks  sweet  and  pure  in  papa's 
partial  eyes,"  he  said. 

"  It's  nice  to  have  you  look  at  me  with  that 
kind  of  eyes,  you  dear  papa,"  she  returned,  giv 
ing  him  a  vigorous  hug,  and  laughing  merrily. 

"  I  think  it's  with  that  kind  of  eyes  papa  looks 
at  all  his  children,"  remarked  Max,  "  and  I  be 
lieve  it  is  for  our  happiness  and  his,  too." 

"  Very  true,  my  son,"  rejoined  the  captain. 

Lulu  was  full  of  pleasurable  excitement. 
"  Papa,  do  you  know  if  all  the  things  you  have 
sent  for  have  come  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  I  think  it  likely  the  last  of  them  came  on 
the  midnight  train,  which  brings  the  express," 
he  answered.  "  I  will  make  inquiry  after  break 
fast.  Now  try  to  forget  these  matters  for  a 
little,  while  we  have  our  reading  and  prayer." 

She  sobered  down  at  that,  and  earnestly  tried 
to  give  her  thoughts  to  the  teachings  of  the 
portion  of  Scripture  her  father  read,  and  to  join 
with  her  heart  in  the  prayer  that  followed. 

That  duty  attended  to,  and  the  breakfast  bell 
not  having  rung  yet,  they  repaired  to  the  front 
porch  to  wait  for  it. 

There  seemed  an  unusual  stir  in  the  town. 


282          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

people  passing  to  and  fro,  early  though  it  was, 
and  fire-crackers  going  off  here  and  there. 

"  You  seem  to  have  stirred  up  the  patriotism 
of  the  people  here,  Captain,"  Mr.  Short  said 
laughingly,  as  he  came  in  at  the  gate  and  up  the 
patli  to  the  porch  steps.  "  Good-morning,  sir. 
Good-morning,  young  folks.  We  are  favored 
with  as  good  weather  as  one  could  ask  for,  and 
your  packages  all  arrived  by  last  night's  train  ; 
so  that  everything  looks  propitious  for  your 
celebration,  so  far.  I  had  the  things  taken 
directly  to  the  school-house,  and  doubtless  they 
will  be  unpacked  in  good  season." 

The  captain  said  "Thank  you,"  and  invited 
Mr.  Short  to  walk  in  and  take  breakfast  with 
them.  The  bell  rang  at  the  moment,  and  the 
invitation  was  accepted. 

"You  are  honoring  the  day,  I  see,  Miss  Lulu," 
remarked  Mr.  Short,  with  a  smiling  glance  at 
her  attire. 

"  Oh,  yes,"  she  said,  looking  down  at  her 
badge,  "  I  want  everybody  to  know  that  I'm  a 
patriotic  American  girl.  I  made  this  badge  and 
a  whole  boxful  beside  for  the  school  children  tc 
wear. 

"  Papa,  mayn't  I  carry  them  to  the  school- 
house  myself,  after  breakfast,  and  help  the 
teacher  fasten  them  on  ?  " 

"  You  may  go,  and  I'll  go  with  you,"  he  said  ; 
**  and  if  the  children  fancy  wearing  them,  and 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          283 

the  teacher  will  accept  our  services,  we  will  do 
as  you  propose." 

"  I'll  be  bound  the  children  wont  object,  but 
will  be  delighted  with  the  gift  of  the  pretty 
bunch  of  ribbons,  whether  they  have,  or  have 
not,  any  patriotism  in  their  make-up,"  laughed 
Mr.  Short. 

"  By  the  way,  Captain,  I  met  Riggs  on  the 
street  as  I  came  here,  and  he  informed  me  that 
he  would  be  present  at  the  oration,  reading  of 
the  Declaration,  and  so  forth,  and  that  he  hoped 
the  people  would  turn  out  'copiously.'  He's 
rather  original  in  the  use  of  words." 

"So  I  have  discovered,"  was  the  captain's 
quiet  reply. 

"  Has  he  told  you  of  his  plans  for  improving 
his  house  ?  "  asked  Mr.  Short,  with  a  humorous 
look. 

"  Yes,  and  how  he  obtained  his  wealth  spite 
of  entire  lack  of  education." 

"  It  was  a  lucky  find,  and  he's  one  of  the 
richest  men  of  the  town  ;  but  if  he  had  educa 
tion  he  would  get  twice  the  satisfaction  out  of 
his  wealth  that  he  does  as  it  is  ;  at  least,  I 
think  so." 

"  And  I  do  not  doubt  that  you  are  right,5* 
assented  Captain  Raymond. 

"  Well,  Miss  Lulu,  how  many  pounds  of  fire 
crackers  do  you  expect  to  set  off  to-day?" 
asked  Mr.  Short.  "  So  patriotic  a  young  lady 


284          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

will  hardly  be  satisfied  with  less  than  two  or 
three,  I  suppose." 

"  Indeed,  sir,  I  do  not  expect  to  fire  one," 
she  returned  gaily.  "Papa  has  promised  me 
something  else  in  place  of  them  ;  I  don't  know 
yet  what  it  is,  but  as  he  says  I  will  enjoy  it  more 
I'm  quite  sure  I  shall." 

"  Now,  I  shouldn't  wonder  if  I  could  guess 
what  it  is,"  returned  Mr.  Short  with  a  twinkle 
in  his  eye. 

"  Perhaps  so,  sir;  but  I  don't  want  to  be  told 
till  papa's  time  for  telling  me  comes,  or  by  any 
body  but  him." 

"  Good  girl;  uncommonly  loyal  and  obedient," 
he  said  laughingly. 

"  No,  sir,  you  are  mistaken  in  thinking  me 
that,"  she  said,  with  heightened  color;  "  I'm 
naturally  very  wilful,  so  that  papa  has  had  any 
amount  of  trouble  to  teach  me  to  obey. 

"  But  the  lesson  has  been  pretty  thoroughly 
learned,"  said  her  father  kindly,  Mr.  Short 
adding,  "  I'm  sure  of  it ;  and  she  is  certainly 
honest  and  frank." 

The  school  children  were  delighted  with  the 
badges,  the  teacher  glad  of  Lulu's  help  in  pin 
ning  them  on,  and  of  the  gentlemen's  assistance 
in  forming  her  procession.  All  were  on  their 
best  behavior,  and  everything  went  prosperously 
with  the  celebration. 

The  captain  and  his  children  following  in  th« 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          285 

wake  of  the  procession,  returned  to  the  school 
room  to  see  and  assist  in  the  distribution  of  the 
candies,  cakes,  and  fruits.  The  delight  and 
gratitude  of  the  recipients  was  a  pretty  and 
pleasant  thing  to  behold. 

By  the  time  that  was  over  the  Raymond's 
dinner  hour  had  arrived,  and  they  hastened  to 
their  boarding-house. 

As  they  left  the  table  the  captain  caught  an 
inquiring  look  from  Lulu. 

"Yes,  child,  you  shall  know  now;  you  have 
waited  very  patiently,"  he  said.  "  I  am  going 
to  teach  you  how  to  handle  a  pistol  and  shoot 
at  a  mark." 

"  Oh,  good,  good  !  "  she  exclaimed,  clapping 
her  hands  in  delight.  "  I  always  did  want  to 
know  how  to  shoot,  but  I  didn't  suppose  you'd 
ever  let  me  touch  a  pistol  or  gun,  papa." 

"  I  wont,  except  when  I'm  close  beside  you," 
he  said,  "  at  least,  not  for  a  long  time  to  come. 
But  I  am  going  to  teach  you,  because  there  may 
be  times  in  a  woman's  life  when  such  knowledge 
and  skill  may  be  of  great  value  to  her." 

"  Max  will  take  part,  too,  wont  he  ? "  she 
asked. 

"  Yes,  certainly;  it  is  even  more  important 
for  him  to  know  how  to  use  fire-arms  than  for 
you.  Mr.  Short  will  join  in  the  sport,  too,  and 
you  may  invite  Marian  to  do  so  also,  if  you 
choose." 


286          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  Oh,  thank  you,  papa  !  I  will,"  she  said, 
running  back  to  the  room  they  had  just  left, 
while  her  father  went  on  to  his. 

Marian  was  clearing  the  table  as  Lulu  came 
rushing  in,  half  breathless  with  haste  and  ex»- 
citement. 

"  O  Marian,"  she  said,  "  papa  is  going  to 
teach  me  to  use  a  pistol ;  to  shoot  at  a  mark; 
and  he  told  me  I  might  ask  you  if  you  would 
like  to  learn  too.  Would  you  ?  " 

"  Thank  you,  yes;  it's  just  what  I've  been 
longing  to  learn,  for  if  the  United  States  Gov 
ernment  can't,  or  wont,  protect  me  from  the 
Mormons,  I  want  to  know  how  to  protect  my 
self,"  returned  the  girl,  her  eyes  flashing:  "help 
less  women  are  their  victims,  but  I  don't  mean 
to  be  a  helpless  one.  I'll  learn,  if  your  father 
will  teach  me;  then  I'll  get  a  pistol  of  my  own 
and  use  it,  too,  if  I  have  occasion." 

"  Marian,  what  makes  you  so  fierce  at  them  ?" 
asked  Lulu  in  surprise.  "  Is  it  because  they 
persuaded  your  father  to  be  a  Mormon  and  leave 
his  own  country?  " 

"  Yes ;  and  because  they  force  women  to 
marry  against  their  will :  they  force  them  into 
sin,  making  them  mai'ry  horrid  creatures  (calling 
themselves  men,  but  not  worthy  of  the  name) 
that  already  have  wives;  sometimes  a  number  of 
them. 

"  And  if  a  woman  dares  resist  they  say  she  if 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          287 

Weakening  in  the  faith — supposing  she  is  called 
a  Mormon — and  according  to  their  wicked,  fiend 
ish,  blood  atonement  doctrine  she  must  be  put 
to  death  ;  and  so  they  murder  her  in  the  name 
of  religion. 

"  I  know  of  one  poor  creature  that  ran  away 
from  her  husband  to  escape  that  dreadful  fate  ; 
for  he  told  her  they  thought  she  was  weakening 
in  the  faith  and  that  he  was  to  kill  her.  Every 
night  he  hung  a  dagger  at  the  head  of  her  bed, 
and  he  told  her  that  some  night  she  would  hear 
a  tap  at  the  window  at  midnight,  and  that  would 
be  a  signal  for  him  to  stab  her  to  death  with 
that  dagger. 

"  Now  do  you  wonder  I  think  it  would  be  well 
for  me  to  have  a  pistol  and  know  how  to  use  it  ?  " 

"  No,  indeed  !  "  exclaimed  Lulu.  "  I'm  sure 
I  should  in  your  place  ;  and  I'm  dreadfully 
ashamed  that  my  government  doesn't  protect 
you  so  well  that  no  one  would  dare  do  such 
things  to  you  or  to  any  woman  or  girl,  or  any 
body.  It's  just  awful  !  I  shall  tell  papa  about 
it,  and  ask  him  if  something  can't  be  done.  I 
think  he'll  find  a  way  ;  and  I  can  tell  you,  if  he 
gets  out  to  do  a  thing  it's  pretty  sure  to  be 
done." 

"  You  have  great  confidence  in  him,"  Marian 
returned,  with  a  sad  sort  of  smile.  "  Ah,  you're 
yery  fortunate,  Miss  Lu,  to  have  such  a  father." 

"  Don't  I  know  it  ?"  replied  Lulu,  exultantly. 


288          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

**  Max  and  Grade  and  I  think  he's  just  the  best 
man  and  kindest  father  that  ever  lived.  He 
knows  all  about  fire-arms,  too,  and  if  anybody 
can  teach  us  how  to  use  them  he  can." 

"  When  do  we  take  the  lesson,  Miss  Lu  ? " 
inquired  Marian. 

"  I  suppose  in  a  few  minutes,  but  you  can 
come  just  when  you  are  ready,  I  must  run  back 
now  and  tell  papa  that  you  will  join  us." 

She  was  full  of  what  Marian  had  just  told  her 
of  Mormon  doings,  and  at  once  repeated  it  all 
to  her  father,  winding  up  with  "  Oh,  papa,  isn't 
it  dreadful?  Can't  something  be  done  to  put  a 
stop  to  such  wicked,  cruel  doings  ?  I  do  think 
it's  a  perfect  disgrace  that  such  deeds  can  be 
done  in  our  country." 

"  And  I  quite  agree  with  you,"  he  sighed, 
"  and  am  resolved  to  exert  myself  to  the  utmost 
to  put  a  stop  to  the  commission  of  such  crimes 
in  the  name  of  religion. 

"  Talk  of  the  right  of  Mormon  men  to  civil 
and  religious  liberty,"  he  went  on,  rather  think 
ing  aloud  than  speaking  to  her,  "  what  has  be 
come  of  the  woman's  right  to  the  same,  if  they 
are  to  be  permitted  to  murder  her  when  she 
ceases  to  believe  as  they  do,  or  to  conform  her 
conduct  to  the  will  of  their  hierarchy  ?  Oh,  it 
is  monstrous,  monstrous,  that  this  thing  called 
Mormonism  has  been  allowed  to  grow  to  its 
present  proportions  ! " 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          289 

*  Can't  you  put  a  stop  to  it,  papa  ?  "  she  asked. 

"I,  child ?  Jput  a  stop  to  it? "  he  returned, 
smiling  slightly  with  amusement.  "  You  may 
well  believe  that  if  I  had  the  power  I  would 
need  no  urging  to  exercise  it." 

"  I'm  sure  I  wish  you  had,  papa,"  said  Max. 
"But  as  you  haven't,  I'm  afraid  we  may  be 
obliged  to  fight  one  of  these  days  to  rid  the 
country  of  that  tyrannical  Mormon  hierarchy 
that  is  aiming  to  destroy  our  free  institutions. 

"  So,  Lu,  you  will  do  well  to  make  the  best 
of  your  opportunities  to  learn  the  use  of  fire 
arms  ;  for  there  is  no  knowing  how  much  help- 
we  men  and  boys  may  need  from  the  women 
and  girls,  if  that  tug  of  war  comes,"  he  added, 
suddenly  dropping  the  serious  tone  in  which  he 
had  begun  and  adopting  a  sportive  one. 

"  You  needn't  make  fun  of  us,  Max,"  she  re 
torted,  "for  I'm  sure  women  and  girls  have 
sometimes  done  good  service  in  time  of  Avar.'* 

"  I  willingly  acknowledge  it,"  he  said  ;  "  his 
tory  gives  us  a  number  of  such  instances.  They 
have  carried  dispatches  at  the  risk  of  their  lives, 
concealed  and  befriended  patriots  when  pursued 
by  the  enemy,  taken  care  of  the  sick  and  wound 
ed  soldiers,  made  many  sacrifices  for  their  coun 
try,  and  in  some  instances  even  put  on  men's 
attire  and  fought  in  the  ranks.  Perhaps  that 
last  is  what  you'd  like  to  do,"  he  wound  ujv 
laughingly. 


290          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

"  No,  I  wouldn't,"  she  said  ;  "  but  I  think  I 
could  and  would  do  the  others  if  there  should 
be  any  need  for  me  to." 

"I  believe  it,"  her  father  said,  "because  I 
know  you  are  both  courageous  and  patriotic.  I 
will  give  you  this  when  you  have  learned  how 
to  use  it,"  he  added,  taking  a  small,  silver- 
mounted  pistol  from  his  pocket  and  putting  it 
into  her  hands.  "  It  is  not  loaded,  and  you  may 
examine  it  and  learn  all  you  can  in  that  way, 
while  we  are  waiting  for  Mr.  Short  to  come. 
He  will  bring  the  target  and  set  it  up  in  the 
shade  of  those  large  trees  down  yonder  by  the 
river,  where  we  can  shoot  at  it  without  danger 
of  a  stray  shot  striking  where  it  might  harm 
any  one  or  any  thing." 

Mr.  Short  came  presently,  the  little  party 
repaired  to  the  designated  spot,  and  the  two 
girls  took  their  first  lesson  in  the  use  of  the 
pistol. 

At  first  their  bullets  went  wide  of  the  mark, 
but  after  a  number  of  trials  they  were  able  to 
come  pretty  near  it,  and  were  told  they  did  very 
well — all  things  considered. 

The  gentlemen,  and  Max  also,  took  their  turns, 
and  the  girls  watched  them  with  a  feeling  akin 
to  envy  at  their  superior  skill.  Max  was  a  very 
respectable  shot,  Mr.  Short  still  better,  while 
the  captain  showed  uncommon  dexterity. 

"  As  I  ought,"  he  said,  laughingly,  when  com' 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          291 

plimented  on  it,  "  that  being  a  part  of  my  pro. 
fession." 

At  length  they  had  all  had  enough  of  it,  and 
putting  up  their  empty  pistols,  returned  to  the 
house. 

They  seated  themselves  in  the  shaded  porch, 
and  had  hardly  done  so  when  they  were  joined 
by  Mr.  Austin  and  Albert. 

"  I  heard  some  one  say  you  were  target-shoot 
ing,"  remarked  Albert  to  Max,  "  and  that  the 
captain  hit  the  center  of  the  mark  every  time." 

"  So  he  did,"  said  Max,  "but  shooting  at  a 
target  is  nothing  to  papa  ;  he  shoots  a  bird  on 
the  wing.  Indeed,  I've  seen  him  bring  down 
several  of  a  flock  with  one  shot  ;  also  throw  up 
two  potatoes  and  send  a  bullet  through  them 
both  before  they  reached  the  ground." 

"  I'd  like  very  much  to  see  him  do  that  last," 
Albert  said,  "  though  I  don't  in  the  least  doubt 
your  word  ;  especially  as  all  the  men  about 
here  who  have  hunted  with  him  say  he's  a  capi 
tal  shot." 

At  that  Max  turned  to  Sandy  McAlpine, 
itanding  near,  and  asked  if  he  could  get  him 
two  potatoes. 

"  Cooked  or  raw  ?  "  asked  the  boy. 

"Raw,  of  course,"  laughed  Max,  "and  111 
hand  them  back  when  I'm  done  with  them.  I 
don't  think  they'll  be  hurt  much  for  cooking 
and  eating." 


292          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

Sandy  ran  off  round  the  house  in  the  direc 
tion  of  the  kitchen,  and  was  back  again  almost 
immediately  with  the  desired  articles. 

"  Papa,"  said  Max,  holding  them  up  to  view, 
"  won't  you  load  your  pistol  and  show  what  you 
can  do  with  it  and  these  ?  " 

"  Yes,  to  please  you,  my  boy,"  the  captain  re 
plied,  taking  out  and  loading  the  little  weapon 
of  warfare  that  Lulu  began  already  to  look  upon 
as  her  property.  Then  taking  the  offered  po 
tatoes  he  threw  them  high  in  air,  fired,  and  they 
came  down  each  with  a  hole  through  it. 

"  Admirably  done,  Captain  ! ''  exclaimed  Mr. 
Austin.  "  I  am  considered  a  very  fair  marks 
man  at  home,  but  I  could  not  do  that." 

"  There  is  nothing  like  trying,  sir  ;  and  prob 
ably  you  excel  me  in  many  another  thing,"  the 
captain  said  pleasantly,  as  he  stepped  into  the 
porch  again  and  resumed  his  seat. 

Then  the  gentlemen  fell  into  discourse  about  the 
event  commemorated  by  that  day's  celebration. 

"  Your  Declaration  of  Independence  handles 
King  George  the  Third  with  much  severity," 
remarked  Mr. 'Austin,  addressing  Captain  Ray 
mond. 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  the  truth  is  sometimes  the  severest 
thing  that  can  be  said,"  returned  the  captain, 
with  a  good-humored  smile. 

"  You  are  right  there,  sir,"  pursued  the  Eng 
lishman.  "  I  cannot  say  that  I  altogether  ad- 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.        293 

mire  the  character  of  that  monarch,  though  hb 
had  some  excellent  traits,  and  in  reading  of  the 
struggle  of  the  colonies  for  freedom,  my  sym 
pathies  have  always  been  with  them. 

"  As  you  are  no  doubt  aware,  many  of  the 
English  of  that  day  sympathized  with  them  and 
rejoiced  over  their  success.  Fox,  Burke  and 
Chatham  had  kept  the  merits  of  their  cause  well 
before  the  public  mind." 

"  For  which  we  owe  them  a  debt  of  grati 
tude,"  responded  the  captain  ;  "  as  we  do  John 
Bright,  also,  for  his  outspoken  sympathy  with 
our  Federal  Government  in  its  efforts  to  put 
down  the  late  rebellion, — a  time  of  sore  trial  to 
Union-loving  Americans ;  a  time  *  when  days 
were  dark  and  friends  were  few,'  and  even  such 
men  as  Gladstone  and  Guthrie  showed  them 
selves  sympathizers  with  the  would-be  destroy 
ers  of  our  nation. 

"  It  seemed  passing  strange  to  loyal  Ameri» 
cans  of  that  day  that  the  English,  who  had  for 
many  years  so  constantly  reproached  our  land 
for  allowing  the  existence  of  negro  slavery 
within  her  borders,  should,  when  the  awful 
struggle  was  upon  us,  side  with  those  whose  aim 
and  purpose  it  was  to  found  an  empire  upon  the 
perpetual  bondage  of  millions  of  that  race — 
their  fellow-men  ;  for,  as  the  Bible  tells  us,  God 
•hath  made  of  one  blood  all  nations  of  men  fat 
to  dwell  on  all  the  face  of  the  earth.'  " 


294          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

"I  acknowledge  the  inconsistency,"  returned 
Mr.  Austin  ;  "  but  do  not  forget  that  not  all 
Englishmen  were  guilty  of  it.  Mr.  Bright,  ac 
cording  to  your  own  showing,  was  a  notable 
exception  ;  and  there  were  many  others. 

"  Nor  is  inconsistency  a  fault  confined  to 
Englishmen,"  he  added,  with  a  slightly  mis 
chievous  smile  ;  "  the  readers  of  your  Declara 
tion,  in  the  days  wheiti  negro  slavery  flourished 
in  this  country,  must  sometimes  have  felt  un 
comfortably  conscious  of  the  inconsistency  of 
the  two, — the  contradiction  between  creed  and 
manner  of  life." 

"No  doubt,"  acknowledged  Captain  Ray 
mond,  "  and  thankful  I  am  that  the  blot  is  re 
moved  from  the  scutcheon  of  my  country." 

"  '  Slaves  cannot  breathe  in  England  ! '  ** 
quoted  Albei't,  with  pride  and  satisfaction. 

"  I  think  they  were  never  deprived  of  that 
privilege  in  America."  remarked  Max  soberly, 
but  with  a  mischievous  t  v>  ,,-,-kje  iii  n..  eye. 

"  Ah,  it  is  not  meant  in  that  sense  ,  but  Eng 
lishmen  have  never  been  guilty  of  holding  men 
in  bondage — in  their  own  land,  at  least." 

"  Haven't  they  ?  "  cried  Max,  pricking  up  his 
ears.  "  Why,  then,  did  your  Alfred  the  Great 
make  laws  respecting  the  sale  of  slaves  ?  " 

"  I  had  forgotten  that  for  the  moment,"  re 
turned  Albert,  reddening  :  "  but  T  was  thinking 
only  of  negro  slavery." 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.         291 

"White  slaves,  they  were  to  be  sure."  ad 
mitted  Max,  in  a  slightly  sarcastic  tone,  "  but  I 
can't  see  that  it's  any  less  cruel  and  wicked  to 
enslave  white  men  than  darkies." 

"  But  those  were  very  early  times,  when  men 
were  little  better  than  savages." 

"Alfred  the  Great  among  the  rest?" 

"  Assuredly  Alfred  the  Great  was  no  savage  * 
returned  Albert,  slightly  nettled,  "  but  then  he 
was  far  ahead  of  his  time,  and  I  must  still  insist 
that  you  go  very  far  back  to  fasten  the  re 
proach  of  slave-holding  upon  Great  Britain." 

The  two  fathers  had  paused  in  their  discourse 
to  listen  to  the  talk  of  the  lads,  and  they  seemed 
to  have  forgotten  the  presence  of  their  elders. 

"  Well,  then,  to  come  down  to  a  later  day,n 
said  Max,  "don't  you  remember  the  statute 
made  by  Edward  the  Sixth,  that  if  anybody 
lived  idly  for  three  days,  or  was  a  runaway,  he 
should  be  taken  before  two  justices  of  the 
peace,  branded  with  a  V  with  a  hot  iron  on  the 
breast,  and  given  as  a  slave  to  the  one  who 
brought  him  for  two  years  ;  and  if  during  that 
time  he  absented  himself  for  fourteen  days  he 
was  to  be  branded  again  with  a  hot  iron,  on  the 
cheek,  with  the  letter  S,  and  to  be  his  master's 
slave  forever  !  The  master  might  put  a  ring 
of  iron  round  his  neck,  leg,  or  arm,  too,  feed 
him  poorly,  and  beat,  chain,  or  otherwise  abuse 
him. 


296         ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

K  That  white  slavery  in  England  was  worse 
than  ever  negro  slavery  was  in  the  United  States 
of  America." 

"  Well,  they  who  practiced  it  were  the  ances 
tors  of  Americans  as  truly  as  of  those  of  the 
present  race  of  Englishmen,  that  have  to  bear 
the  reproach  of  the  slavery  of  the  very  early 
times  you  first  spoke  of,"  retorted  Albert. 

"  Maybe  so,"  said  Max ;  "  and  I  suppose 
they — the  Americans — inherited  their  ancestors' 
wicked  propensities  (same  as  the  Englishmen), 
which  may  account  for  their  becoming  slave 
holders." 

"  Well,"  Albert  said,  "  you  can't  deny  that 
England  has  always  been  a  foe  to  the  slave 
trade,  and — " 

"  Oh  !  oh  !  oh  !  how  you  forget  ! "  exclaimed 
Max.  "  History  says  that  she  began  in  1563  to 
import  slaves  from  Africa  into  the  West  Indies  ; 
and  the  trade  was  not  finally  abolished  till  the 
spring  of  1807.  Also,  that  by  the  peace  of 
Utrecht,  in  1*7 13,  England  obtained  a  monopoly 
of  the  slave-trade,  and  engaged  to  furnish  Span 
ish  America  with  one  hundred  and  forty-four 
thousand  negroes  in  thirty-three  years  ;  that  a 
great  slave-trading  company  was  formed  in 
England,  and  Queen  Anne  took  one-quarter  of 
the  stock  ;  that  the  King  of  Spain  took  another 
quarter,  so  that  the  two  sovereigns  became  th« 
greatest  slave-dealers  in  Christendom. 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          297 

"  That  company  brought  slaves  into  the  Amer 
ican  colonies,  and  to  some  extent  slavery  wat 
forced  upon  them  by  what  they  then  called  the 
mother  country.  Queen  Anne  directed  the  New 
York  colonial  government  to  encourage  the 
Royal  African  Company,  and  see  that  the  col- 
ony  was  furnished  with  plenty  of  merchantable 
negroes  at  moderate  rates. 

"  In  the  face  of  such  facts,  can  you  deny  that 
England  was  largely  responsible  for  the  slavery 
that  has  proved  such  a  curse  to  this  country  in 
years  past  ?  " 

Alfred's  countenance  wore  a  discomfited  ex 
pression,  and  instead  of  replying  to  Max's  query, 
he  turned  to  his  father  with  the  question,  "  Is 
he  correct,  sir,  in  the  statements  he  has  been 
making  ?  " 

"  I  am  afraid  he  is,"  replied  Mr.  Austin, 
"  though  some  of  his  facts  had  slipped  my  mem 
ory  till  he  brought  them  up.  Europe  has  no 
right  to  twit  America  on  the  subject  of  slavery 
or  the  slave  trade  ;  especially  now  when  negro 
slavery  no  longer  exists  in  any  part  of  the 
Union." 

"  And  our  government  abolished  the  slave 
trade  in  the  same  year  that  yours  did,"  remarked 
Captain  Raymond. 

"  Yes,"  acknowledged  Mr.  Austin,  "  but  the 
act  for  the  abolition  of  slavery  throughout  the 
British  colonies  was  passed  thirty  years  before 


298          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

Lincoln's  Emancipation  Proclamation  set  the 
last  of  the  negroes  free  in  this  country." 

'•True  ;  but  as  a  set-off  against  that,  remem 
ber  that  the  first  negroes  brought  to  Massachu 
setts  (the  first  in  New  England)  were  sent  home 
at  the  public  expense,  by  the  General  Court  of 
the  colony. 

"  That  was  in  1640.  In  1652,  Roger  Williams 
and  Gorton  made  a  decree  against  slavery  in 
Rhode  Island  ;  while  as  late  as  1672,  white 
slaves  were  sold  in  England,  to  be  transported 
to  Virginia." 

"  Not  sold  into  perpetual  slavery,  however," 
said  Mr.  Austin. 

"  No  ;  but  for  a  term  of  years  ;  still,  it  can 
not  be  denied  that  they  were  slaves  for  the  time 
being. 

"  But  I  give  England"  all  credit  for  her  per 
sistent  efforts  to  suppress  the  slave-trade  since 
she  abolished  it  in  1807." 

"  By  the  way,"  said  Mr.  Austin, "  I  have  been, 
since  coming  into  this  community,  using  every 
opportunity  for  studying  the  Mormon  problem, 
and  it  strikes  me  as  a  strange  thing  that  such  a 
system  of  hierarchical  tyranny  and  outrage  has 
been  so  long  permitted  to  exist  and  grow  in  this 
land  of  boasted  freedom — civil  and  religious." 

"  It  can  not  seem  stranger,  or  more  inconsist 
ent,  to  you  than  to  me,  sir,"  replied  Captain 
Raymond,  flushing  with  mortification.  "  I  am 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          299 

exceedingly  ashamed  of  this  bar  sinister  on  the 
scutcheon  of  my  country  ;  but  I  trust  that  vig 
orous  measures  are  about  to  be  taken  for  its 
expunging. 

*  Some  have  defended  the  let-alone  policy  on 
the  ground  that  to  restrain  and  punish  them 
would  be  to  abridge  religious  liberty  :  but  I  can 
not  see  it  so.  We  have,  in  fact,  allowed  a  most 
tyrannical  hierarchy  to  persecute  even  to  put 
ting  to  death,  those  who,  having  unfortunately 
fallen  into  its  power,  attempted  an  escape  from, 
it,  or  refused  to  submit  to  its  dictation  in  regard 
to  either  belief  or  practice. 

"  Women  have  been  forcibly  detained  among 
them  (the  self-styled  "  Latter-day  Saints ")  hor 
ribly  ill-used,  and  when  caught  in  an  attempt 
to  escape,  foully  murdered. 

"The  perpetrators  and  abettors  of  such  deeds 
of  darkness  mistake  liberty  for  license  ;  every 
man  or  woman  has  a  right  to  life,  liberty,  and 
the  pursuit  of  happiness — yet  only  so  far  as  he 
does  not  interfere  with  the  exercise  of  the  same 
rights  by  others.  The  victims  of  Mormon 
tyranny  and  intolerance  have  most  certainly  a 
right  to  complain  that  they  have  been  deprived 
of  both  civil  and  religious  liberty." 

"  Very  true,"  responded  Mr.  Austin  ;  "  and  I 
have  learned  with  mortification,  that  the  ranks 
of  the  Mormons  are  largely  recruited  fro» 
Great  Britain." 


300          ELSIE  AND   mE  RAYMONDS. 


"  Yes  ;  I  wish  your  government  were  ae  anx 
ious  to  keep  that  class  of  its  citizens  as  its  sail 
ors,  particularly  its  man-of-war's-men,"  returned 
the  captain  laughingly. 

A  short  discussion  as  to  the  comparative 
amount  of  freedom  enjoyed  by  the  citizens  of 
the  two  countries,  and  the  comparative  security 
of  life  and  property,  followed,  each  gentleman 
maintaining  that  his  own  was  the  more  favored 
land. 

"  Mormonism  has  for  years  destroyed  in  a 
great  measure  the  personal  liberty  of  the  citizens 
of  this  part  of  your  country,  where  it  flourishes," 
remarked  Mr.  Austin,  "  and  certainly  there  is 
neither  civil  nor  religious  liberty  enjoyed  with 
in  the  walls  of  the  nasteries  and  convents 
scattered  over  the  wh  le  length  and  breadth  of 
your  land." 

"  That  is  true,  only  too  true  !  "  sighed  the 
captain,  "  but,  as  regards  monastic  and  conven 
tual  institutions,  as  true  of  your  country  as  of 
mine. 

"  Who  can  tell  what  suffering  —  what  martyr 
doms,  may  be  endured  by  the  hapless  inmates 
of  those  prisons  for  innocent  victims  ? 

"  Some  will  say  they  should  not  be  interfered 
with,  because  the  shutting  up  of  men  and  women 
in  that  way  is  part  of  the  Romish  religion,  and 
that  the  victims  go  into  their  confinement  vol 
untarily;  but  it  is  certain  that  Borne  do  not  do 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          301 

so  voluntarily,  and  that  others  are  wheedled  in  by- 
false  representations  of  the  life  to  be  led  there. 

"  When  they  learn  by  experience  what  it  really 
Is,  they  often  abhor  it  and  long  for  the  restor 
ation  of  their  freedom,  but,  alas,  find  themselves 
in  the  hands  of  jailors,  fastened  in  by  bolts  and 
bars,  and  so  forced  to  remain,  no  matter  how 
unwillingly  they  are  detained.  Where  for  them 
is  the  liberty  guaranteed  by  our  Constitution  to 
every  citizen,  from  the  highest  to  the  lowest  ?  " 

"  It  is  a  great  wrong,  both  here  and  in  Great 
Britain,"  Mr.  Austin  said.  "  One  occasionally 
escapes,  and  thrills  the  public  miud  for  a  time 
by  her  tale  of  the  horrors  of  her  prison,  but 
they — her  tormentors — assert  that  she  is  insane, 
her  tale  the  fabrication  of  an  unsound  mind — 
and  presently  it  is  all  forgotten  by  the  fickle 
populace;  drowned  in  thoughts  of  other  matters. 

"  But  what  remedy  would  you  propose  ?  the 
abolition  of  monasteries  and  convents  ?  " 

"  No;  that  would  savor  of  interference  with 
their  religious  liberty  ;  but  I  would  have  them 
obliged  to  open  their  doors  to  the  visits  and  in 
spection  of  the  police  at  any  and  all  times,  with 
out  previous  warning  ;  and  the  fact  made  cer 
tain  that  every  grown  person  in  the  establish 
ment  was  left  entirely  free  to  come  and  go  at 
his  or  her  pleasure.  While  that  liberty  is  not 
•ecured  to  them,  it  cannot  be  said  with  truth  that 
they  are  free  citizens  of  a  free  country.*1 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

THE  little  party  gathered  on  the  porch  again 
after  tea,  and  amused  themselves  with  conver 
sation  while  waiting  till  the  setting  of  the  sun, 
and  the  fading  away  of  the  twilight  should  give 
a  better  opportunity  for  the  display  of  the  tire- 
works. 

"  I  fancy."  remarked  Mr.  Austin,  half -inter 
rogatively,  )  lalf  in  assertion,  "  that  our  present 
sovereign  is  more  highly  appreciated  in  America 
than  was  her  royal  grandfather  George  the 
Third  ?" 

"  There  is  no  comparison,"  replied  Captain 
Raymond.  "  Americans  highly  appreciated 
your  queen's  kindly  expressed  sympathy  in  the 
sad  days  of  our  poor  Garfield's  suffering,  and 
she  has  many  admirers  among  us." 

Just  then  Mr.  Riggs  came  up  the  path  from 
the  front  gate,  and  greeting  the  company, 
"  Good-evenin',  cap'n,  Mr.  Austin,  and  young 
folks,"  took  a  seat  in  their  midst. 

"  Well,  we've  had  a  riglar  old-time  glorious 
Fourth,"  he  went  on,  addressing  no  one  in  par 
ticular,  "  on'y  'tisn't  done  yit,  thank  fortin',  an* 
I've  come  round  to  see  them  fireworks  set  off. 
The  folks  did  turn  out  copiously  this  mornin', 


SL8IE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.          303 

and  I  don't  mistrust  that  they  wont  do  it  agin 
to-night." 

"  Of  course  they  will.  Who  wouldn't  turn 
out  to  see  fireworks  ?  " 

It  was  the  squeaky  little  voice  again  right 
behind  his  chair,  as  on  the  former  occasion. 

He  sprang  up  as  if  he  had  been  shot,  faced 
about,  and  with  a  scared  look  asked,  "  Why, 
where  is  he — the  old  raskil  ?  " 

"  Rascal,  indeed  !  I'm  no  rascal,  sir,  but  a 
patriotic,  honest  American  citizen." 

It  was  the  squeaky  voice  again,  and  this  time 
sounded  a  trifle  farther  off,  as  if  the  speaker 
might  be  descending  the  porch  steps ;  but 
though  distinctly  heard,  he  could  not  be  seen. 

"  Well,  now,  if  it  isn't  thebeatenest  thing!  I 
wonder  ef  I'm  a-gittin' crazy ! "  exclaimed  Riggs, 
staring  wildly  round  from  side  to  side.  "  You 
all  heered  him,  didn't  ye  ?  but  has  anybody  seen 
the  raskilly  feller?" 

The  Austins  and  Mr.  Short  were  struck  dumb 
with  astonishment ;  the  Raymonds  did  not 
speak  either,  but  the  next  moment  a  loud,  "  Ha, 
ha,  ha  ! "  coming  apparently  from  among  the 
branches  of  the  nearest  tree,  was  followed  by 
the  squeaky  voice  : 

"You  can't  see  me?  That's  only  because 
you  don't  look  in  the  right  place  ;  I'm  big 
«nough  to  be  seen  by  the  naked  eye,  even  at  a 
considerable  distance." 


304          ELSIE  AND   THE  RA  TMOND8. 

"  But  ye'r  always  playing  at  hide  and  seek,1* 
said  Riggs,  "  and  a  body  can't  never  find  ye." 

"  Why  who  is  he?  and  where  is  he?"  que 
ried  Albert,  staring  up  into  the  tree  ;  "  his  voice 
eeems  to  come  from  among  those  branches,  but 
I  see  nothing  there." 

"  It  is  growing  dark,"  remarked  Captain  Ray- 
in  on  d  in  reply. 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  but  still  I  think  I  could  see  a  man 
or  boy  if  he  were  really  there." 

"  Come  up  on  to  the  porch  roof,  all  of  you," 
called  the  voice,  now  seeming  to  come  from 
there ;  "  it'll  be  the  best  place  to  see  the  fire 
works  from." 

"  It  is  time  to  begin  setting  them  off  ;  isn't 
it,  papa  ?  "  asked  Lulu. 

"  Yes,"  he  said,  and  Max,  springing  down  the 
steps  and  the  walk  to  the  gate,  in  another  min 
ute  had  sent  up  a  sky-rocket,  and  as  it  darted 
skyward  the  same  squeaky  voice  cried  out  from, 
the  upper  air,  "  Up  I  go !  " 

"  There,  did  ye  hear  that  ?  "  screamed  Riggs. 
"  He's  gone  up  with  the  rocket.  He  must  be  a 
wizard." 

"  Ha  !  there  is  certainly  a  ventriloquist  among 
us  !  "  exclaimed  Mr.  Austin. 

"  I  agree  with  you,"  said  the  captain,  "  it  is 
the  only  rational  explanation  of  the  phenome* 
cnon." 

"  And  it  is  yourself,  sir  ?  " 


ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS.     3Q5 

w  No,  sir  ;  if  I  have  any  talent  in  that  line  it 
remains  to  be  discovered  by  myself  even." 

And  without  waiting  for  further  embarras 
sing  questions,  the  captain  hurried  to  Max's  as 
sistance. 

Mr.  Short  did  likewise,  and  for  the  next  hour 
or  more  the  display  of  the  fireworks  absorbed 
the  attention  of  every  one  present,  almost  to 
the  exclusion  of  thoughts  on  other  matters. 

It  was  quite  a  fine  display — for  the  captain 
had  been  generous  in  his  outlay  for  the  celebra 
tion  of  the  Fourth,  and  many  were  the  ex 
pressions  of  delight  and  admiration  from  the 
crowd  of  spectators  who  had  gathered  to  wit 
ness  it. 

There  were  rockets,  squibs,  Roman  candles, 
Bengal  lights,  Catherine  wheels,  and  others  of 
more  complicated  structure,  some  of  which  sent 
out  figures  of  men  and  animals. 

O 

One  of  these  Max  reserved  for  the  last,  and  as 
a  tiny  figure  of  a  man  issued  from  the  brilliant 
coruscation  and  darted  upward,  it  cried  out  in 
the  squeaky  little  voice  that  had  troubled  Mr. 
Riggs  so  often,  "  Good-by  ;  I'm  off  !  " 

"  There  the  feller  is  at  last.  I  seen  him  this 
time,"  screamed  the  old  man.  "Now  did  ye 
ever  ?  how  did  he  git  in  there  ?  and  how  did 
he  git  out  ?  " 

The  faces  of  the  crowd  were  full  of  surprise 
and  perplexity  as  they  first  gazed  upward,  theo 


806          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

turned  toward  each  other  in  half -breathless  as 
tonishment. 

"  There  is  a  ventriloquist  among  us,"  repeated 
Mr.  Austin  ;  "  there  must  be,  without  doubt." 

"  Ven — ven — what  is  it  anyway  ?  "  asked 
Riggs. 

"  Ventriloquist ;  one  who  can  speak  without 
moving  his  lips,  and  cause  his  voice  to  seem  to 
come  from  somewhere  outside  of  himself  ;  from 
some  person  or  animal,  or  place  near  at  hand  or 
farther  off." 

"  You  don't  say.  I  never  heered  o'  sech  do- 
ins  !  "  exclaimed  Riggs.  While  several  others 
standing  near  cried  out,  "  A  ventriloquist.  Is 
there  one  here?  If  there  is,  let  him  give  us 
some  more  of  his  tricks.  We'd  like  no  bet 
ter  fun." 

"  Just  you  keep  quiet  then,  all  of  you,  and 
perhaps  he  will,"  said  Mr.  Short,  who,  though 
he  knew  nothing  absolutely  in  regard  to  the 
matter,  began  to  have  strong  suspicions  that 
Captain  Raymond  could  tell  all  about  it  if  he 
would. 

A  short,  sharp  bark,  that  seemed  to  come 
from  the  coat-pocket  of  the  speaker,  made  him 
start  involuntarily  and  thrust  his  hand  deep 
into  it. 

He  drew  it  out  with  a  laugh.  "Nothing 
there,  as  I  might  have  known,"  he  said. 

But  the  words  were  hardly  out  of  his  mouth 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.         307 

when  a  loud,  furious  "barking,  growling  and 
snarling  began  in  the  midst  of  the  crowd,  caus 
ing  them  to  scatter  pell-mell  to  the  sidewalks, 
women  and  children  screaming,  men  and  boys 
shouting,  bursts  of  laughter  following,  as  they 
perceived  that  the  cause  of  their  fright  was  but 
another  trick  of  the  ventriloquist. 

"  Who  is  he  !  who  is  he  !  "  was  the  question 
bandied  from  one  to  another,  but  answered  by 
no  one." 

"  Hoo,  hoo,  hoo  ! "  came  from  amid  the 
branches  of  a  tree  in  Mrs.  McAlpine's  yard. 

It  sounded  like  the  cry  of  an  owl,  but  was  fol 
lowed  by  a  human  voice,  "  Good-night,  friends. 
We  have  had  a  glorious  Fourth,  and  now  it  is 
time  to  go  home  and  to  bed." 

"  That  means  the  show  is  done  for  to-night, 
I  s'pose,"  remarked  Riggs,  "  and  we  may  as  well 
git  fer  home.  But  I  just  wisht  I  could  find  out 
who  the  feller  is,"  he  mumbled  to  himself,  as  he 
aaoved  down  the  street. 

The  crowd  dispersed  and  the  Raymonds  re 
tired  to  their  own  apartments. 

"  Oh,  Max,  how  good  it  is  that  nobody's  found 
you  out  yet  ?  "  laughed  Lulu  gleefully. 

"I'm  glad  they  haven't,"  returned  Max. 
'*  Papa,  did  I  do  anything  objectionable  ?  " 

"  I  have  no  fault  to  find  with  you,  my  boy," 
fcis  father  replied,  with  a  slight  smile  and  a  very 
affectionate  look  at  his  son. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

CAPTAIN  RAYMOND  lingered  some  time  longer 
in  Minersville. 

It  was  near  the  middle  of  July,  and  his  ar 
rangements  had  been  made  for  starting  upon 
the  homeward  journey  in  a  day  or  two,  when 
early  one  morning  he,  Max,  Mr.  Short  and  the 
Austins  set  out  upon  their  final  hunt  together. 

Lulu  was,  of  course,  left  behind  in  the  board 
ing-house. 

As  her  father  kissed  her  good-by  he  said, 
*'  I  am  very  sorry  to  leave  you  alone,  dear  child, 
but  I  trust  that  you  will  be  able  to  pass  the  time 
agreeably  in  reading,  sewing  or  letter-writing — 
whatever  employment  you  fancy  that  can  be 
attended  to  in  the  house — for  I  want  you  to  stay 
within  doors  ;  the  day  is  a  very  warm  one,  and 
I  much  prefer  that  you  should  not  be  exposed 
to  the  heat  of  the  sun. 

"  I  hope  to  be  back  in  season  to  take  you  for 
a  walk  or  ride  in  the  cool  of  the  evening." 

"  I  shall  like  that,  if  you  don't  come  home  too 

tired,  dear  papa,"  she  replied,  clinging  about  his 

neck  for  a  moment.     "  Oh,  do  take  good  care  of 

yourself  1  and  don't  be   a   bit  troubled   lest  I 

308 


ELSIE  AND  TEE  RAYMONDS.          309 

•hould  be  lonesome.     I  shall  do  nicely  and  be 
oh,  so  glad  to  see  you  when  you  come  back.** 

She  followed  him  out  to  the  porch,  with  a 
book  in  her  hand,  and  after  seeing  the  hunting 
party  disappear  down  the  street,  took  a  seat  in 
a  comfortable  arm-chair  in  the  shade  of  the 
vines,  and  amused  herself  with  reading  until 
joined  by  Marian  with  a  basket  of  mending. 

"  There  ! "  exclaimed  Lulu,  closing  her  book. 
"  I  have  some  stockings  to  darn.  I'll  go  and 
get  them  and  my  work-basket,  and  we'll  have  a 
nice  time  together." 

"  I'd  like  that  very  much,"  Marian  said,  "  but 
don't  let  me  hinder  you  from  reading  your 
book." 

"  I'd  rather  stop  reading  and  talk  awhile.  I'm 
remarkably  fond  of  talking,"  laughed  Lulu,  as 
she  hurried  into  the  house. 

She  was  back  again  almost  immediately,  and 
as  she  resumed  her  seat  Marian  said,  "  I  was  glad 
to  hear  you  say  you  were  fond  o  talking,  be. 
cause  I  wish  very  much  you  would  tell  me  about 
your  home  and  your  brothers  and  sisters — if  you 
have  any  beside  the  one  that  is  here." 

Lulu  willingly  complied  with  a  glowing  des 
cription  of  Woodburn,  "  Mamma  Vi,"  Graci* 
and  the  babies,  and  the  happy  life  led  there  by 
the  whole  family. 

Marian  listened  with  deep  interest,  tears  some 
times  starting  to  her  eyes  as  she  was  struck  by 


310          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

the  contrast  between  that  life  and  her  own, 
most  of  all  in  the  tender  fatherly  love  and  car« 
in  which  the  Woodburn  children  rejoiced,  and 
which  had  been  so  sadly  lacking  in  her  experi 
ence  since  the  blighting  curse,  of  Mormonism 
had  fallen  upon  the  McAlpine  household. 

Lulu  noticed  her  emotion,  guessed  at  th* 
cause,  and  made  an  effort  to  divert  the  poor 
girl's  thoughts  from  the  sorrows  of  her  lot,  by 
telling  amusing  anecdotes  of  little  Elsie's  sayings 
and  doings. 

"  Of  course,"  she  said,  "  Mamma  Vi  began  as 
soon  as  Elsie  was  able  to  talk,  to  teach  her  to 
say  the  little  prayer,  '  Now  I  lay  me.'  She  soon 
said  it  nicely,  but  whenever  she  came  to  th« 
part,  *  If  I  should  die,'  she  would  put  in  '  but  I 
wont  die  ! ' 

"Not  long  ago  Mamma  Vi  told  her  she 
thought  she  was  old  enough  now  to  learn  the 
Lord's  prayer.  *  It  is  a  good  deal  longer  than 
the  other,'  she  said,  '  do  you  think  you  can  re 
member  it?'  'Yes'm,'  Elsie  said,  Til  set  it 
down.' 

"  Then  Mamma  Vi  began  teaching  it  to  her, 
but  she  has  never  succeeded  in  getting  her  to 
say  it  all  right  yet,  for  she  always  will  ask  for 
*  daily  corn  bread.'  We  have  corn  bread  on  the 
table  at  least  once  every  day,  and  Elsie  likes  it 
much  better  than  wheat. 

"She  often   saya    things    that   make  us   all 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.         311 

laugh.  Once  Mamma  Vi  had  just  finished  a 
Yery  pretty  new  dress  for  the  little  darling  and 
put  it  on  her  for  the  first  time ;  then  she  took 
her  to  Grandma  Elsie,  who  was  visiting  us,  to 
ask  what  she  thought  of  it. 

" '  See,  ganma,'  little  Elsie  said,  walking  up  to 
her. 

"  Grandma  Elsie  said,  *  Ah !  just  from  Paris  ?* 
And  little  Elsie  nodded  her  head,  saying, 
4  Yes'm,  ganma,  just  from  parasol.'  " 

"  She  must  be  a  dear,  amusing  little  thing," 
•aid  Marian.  "  Is  she  pretty  ?  " 

"  She  is  a  perfect  beauty  !  "  replied  Lulu,  witb 
enthusiasm. 

"  Ah,  here  comes  Edith  Kingsley  ! "  Marian 
exclaimed,  as  the  gate  opened  and  a  girl  a  year 
or  two  younger  than  herself,  a  neighbor  and 
intimate  friend  of  hers,  came  tripping  up  the 
path. 

Lulu  had  met  Edith  several  times  and  liked 
her,  for  she  was  a  pleasant,  sunny-tempered 
child,  innocent  and  artless. 

"  Good-morning,  girls,"  she  said.  "  I  just 
ran  over  for  a  minute  to  tell  you  that  a  party  of 
us  are  going  berrying  this  afternoon,  and  to  ask 
you  both  to  go  along." 

"  I'd  like  to,  if  mother  can  spare  me,"  said 
Marian.  "  But  isn't  it  very  warm  !  " 

"Not  so  warm  as  it  was,"  replied  Edith; 
f  there  are  floating  clouds  now,  so  that  the  SUB 


312          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

doesn't  shine  so  hot,  and  a  nice  breeze  has 
•prung  up.  You'll  go,  won't  you,  Lulu  ?  "  turn 
ing  to  the  latter. 

"  Thank  you  ;  I  feel  a  strong  inclination  to 
go,  but  I  can't,  as  papa  is  not  here  to  give  me 
leave." 

"  Oh,  I'm  sure  he'd  say  you  might  go,"  re 
turned  Edith,  with  eager  entreaty  in  her  tones; 
"  the  place  we  are  going  to  is  only  a  little 
beyond  the  edge  of  town,  and  the  berries  are  so 
thick  we  shall  fill  our  baskets  directly  and  be 
back  long,  long  before  dark.  So  what  objection 
could  he  find?" 

"  He  said  he  wanted  me  to  stay  in  the  house 
till  he  came  back,"  replied  Lulu,  "  he  didn't 
want  me  exposed  to  the  heat  of  the  sun,  and 
hoped  to  be  back  in  time  to  take  me  for  a  walk 
or  ride  in  the  cool  of  the  evening." 

"  Oh,  if  that  was  all,  I'm  sure  he  would  say 
you  could  go,  because  the  sun  isn't  hot  any 
longer.  And  he  didn't  positively  'forbid  you, 
did  he?" 

"No,"  Lulu  said  slowly,  as  if  striving  to  recall 
his  exact  words  ;  "  he  only  said  he  wanted  me 
to  stay  within  doors,  and  gave  that  reason  for 
it ;  and  I'm  pretty  sure  if  he  were  here  he  would 
give  me  permission  to  go." 

"  Then  you  will,  wont  you  ?  " 

Lulu  considered  a  moment.  The  temptation 
to  yield  was  very  strong,  but  the  more  she  re- 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.         318 

fleeted,  the  deeper  grew  her  conviction  that  to 
do  BO  would  be  disobedience  ;  disobedience  to 
the  kindest,  dearest,  most  indulgent  of  fathers ; 
one  who  never  denied  her  any  pleasure  that  he 
deemed  good  for  her. 

"  Come  now,  do  say  you  will,"  urged  Edith, 
coaxingly.  "  Even  if  your  father  should  be  a 
little  vexed  at  first,  he  will  soon  forgive  you." 

"  Perhaps  so  ;  but  it  would  be  a  long  time 
before  I  could  forgive  myself,"  Lulu  said,  then 
added  firmly,  "  No,  Edith,  I  thank  you  very 
much  for  your  invitation,  but  I  can't  go.  I  am 
quite  sure  it  would  be  disobedience,  and  how 
could  I  be  so  ungrateful  as  to  so  grieve  such  a 
father  as  mine  ?  I  couldn't  bear  to  see  the  sorry 
look  that  would  come  into  his  eyes  when  he 
heard  of  it." 

"  Oh,  we  wont  tell  on  you,"  Edith  said  laugh 
ingly. 

Lulu  looked  indignant  at  that.  "  I  should  tell 
on  myself,"  she  said.  "  I  could  never  be  happy 
while  concealing  anything  from  papa." 

Marian  had  left  them  to  consult  with  her 
mother  in  regard  to  her  own  acceptance  of  the 
invitation,  and  now  came  back  to  report  a  fav 
orable  reply.  She  was  much  disappointed  to 
hear  that  Lulu  would  not  go,  and  joined  h«r 
entreaties  to  Edith's  that  she  would  reconsider 
and  accept. 

But  Lulu  was  firm,  both  then  and  later,  when, 


314         ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

ready  to  start  on  their  little  expedition,  they 
again  urged  her  to  accompany  them. 

"  I  think  we'll  have  a  nice  time,"  Edith  said  ; 
"  it's  just  a  pleasant  walk,  winding  about  a  little 
way  among  the  hills,  and  there  are  lovely  wild 
flowers  to  gather  as  well  as  berries.  Oh,  do 
change  your  mind  and  come  along  with  us  !  " 

"  I  do  wish  you  would,  Lulu,"  put  in  Marian, 
"  I  shan't  half  enjoy  myself  without  you,  and 
thinking  how  lonely  you'll  be  here  by  your 
self." 

"  Please  don't  urge  me  any  more,"  returned 
Lulu.  "  I  think  you  wouldn't  if  you  knew  how 
Tery  much  I'd  like  to  go  with  you,  if  I  could 
have  papa's  permission  ;  but  I  know  I  couldn't 
enjoy  myself  going  without  that.  My  con 
science  wouldn't  give  me  any  peace  at  all." 

So  they  left  her.  She  sat  on  the  porch  watch 
ing  them  out  of  sight,  then  opened  her  book, 
and  presently  forgot  her  disappointment  in  the 
interest  of  the  story. 

She  read  on  and  on,  taking  no  note  of  the 
lapse  of  time,  though  full  two  hours  had  passed 
since  the  berry  gatherers  disappeared  round  the 
corner,  till  suddenly  she  became  conscious  that 
some  unusual  excitement  was  abroad  in  the 
streets  of  the  town ;  men  armed  with  muskets, 
revolvers,  and  other  weapons,  were  rushing,  past 
in  the  direction  the  girls  had  taken  ;  women 
and  children  were  running  hither  and  thither, 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.         315 

calling  wildly  to  each  other,  some  crying,  all 
geeming  full  of  anxiety  and  fright. 

"  Oh,  what  is  it  ?  what's  the  matter,  Sandy?" 
asked  Lulu,  dropping  her  book  and  springing  to 
her  feet,  as  the  lad  came  tearing  in  at  the  gate, 
his  face  white  with  terror  and  distress. 

"  A  bear  1 "  he  gasped  ;  "  a  big  grizzly  got 
after  the  girls,  and  they  all  had  to  run  for  their 
lives,  and  he — he  caught  Edith — they  say,  and— 
and  he's  hugging  her  to  death." 

"  Oh  !  oh  ! "  cried  Lulu,  bursting  into  tears 
and  sobs,  "  can't  anybody  save  her  ?  Oh,  I  wish 
papa  was  there  with  his  gun  to  shoot  the  bear, 
he'd  do  it,  I  know  he  would.  And,  oh,  where'a 
Marian  ?  " 

"  She's  safe  now  ;  they  all  got  away  from  the 
beast  but  Edith.  But  Marian  was  so  out  of 
breath  with  fright  and  running  and  crying  be- 
cause  she  couldn't  sav  Edith,  that  she  had  to 
stop  farther  down  the  treet." 

Mrs.  McAlpine  had  heard  enough  of  the  bus 
tle  in  the  streets  to  alarm  her,  and  now  came 
hurrying  out,  asking,  "What's  happened,  Sandy? 
Where's  your  sister?  " 

The  boy  repeated  his  story,  had  scarce  fin 
ished  when  Marian  came  in  at  the  gate,  her 
form  drooping,  her  head  bowed  on  her  breast, 
sobs  shaking  her  whole  frame. 

"  Have  they  got  her  ?  "  asked  Sandy. 

"  Marian,    my    poor  child,  is   Edith    much 


816         ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

hurt?"  questioned  her  mother,  drawing  the 
weeping  girl  into  the  house. 

Marian  did  not  lift  her  head  ;  she  seemed  un 
able  to  speak. 

But  Hugh  came  running  in  from  the  street, 
tears  rolling  down  his  cheeks,  "  Oh,  oh,  Kdith's 
killed  !  she's  dead  !  I  heard  a  man  say  so. 
They've  killed  the  bear,  but  he'd  a'ready 
squeezed  Edith  to  death,  and  tore  her  awful 
with  his  big  claws  and  teeth." 

"  Oh,  don't !  don't  tell  it  !  "  shrieked  Marian, 
covering  her  ears  with  her  hands.  "  Oh,  if  we 
only  hadn't  gone  there  ! " 

"  Her  poor  mother,  her  poor,  poor  mother  ! 
how  will  she  ever  bear  it  ?  "  sobbed  Mrs.  McAl- 
pine,  dropping  into  a  chair  and  hiding  her  face 
with  her  apron. 

Lulu,  too,  was  weeping  bitterly. 

"  What  have  they  c'one  with  her,  Hugh  ?  " 
asked  Sandy,  in  a  loud  whisper. 

"  Who  ?    Edith,  or  the  bear  ?  " 

"  Edith,  I  meant,  of  course,  Stupid,"  returned 
the  elder  brother  contemptuously. 

"  They're  goin'  to  bring  her  home ;  I  guess 
they're  doin'  it  now,"  as  a  sound  as  of  the  tramp 
ling  of  many  feet  smote  upon  their  ears. 

The  body  was  being  carried  past  on  a  hastily 
improvised  litter,  and  in  another  moment,  as  it 
crossed  the  threshold  of  the  home  she  had  left 
two  hours  before  in  the  heyday  of  life  and 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMOND 3.          31 1 

health,  a  woman's  wail  of  heart-breaking  anguish 
rent  the  air. 

"  It's  her  mother,  her  poor  mother  ! "  sobbed 
Mrs.  McAlpine.  "  Wae's  me  for  the  puir  heart 
broken  thing  !  but,  oh  !  thank  God  my  lassie  has 
come  safe  home  to  me  ! " 

Marian  burst  into  wild  weeping,  and  Lulu, 
unable  to  bear  any  more,  ran  swiftly  from  the 
room  to  that  of  her  father,  where,  falling  on  her 
knees  by  the  bedside,  she  buried  her  face  in  the 
clothes  and  cried  as  if  her  heart  would  break. 

She  seemed  to  see  Edith  standing  before  her, 
bright  and  beautiful,  full  of  life  and  health,  aa 
she  had  seen  her — oh,  such  a  little  while  ago! — 
then  in  the  cruel  embrace  of  the  ferocious  wild 
beast,  crushed,  bitten,  torn,  bleeding,  and 
dying — dead.  Then  the  poor  body,  at  last  res 
cued  from  the  clutches  of  the  bear,  but  with  no 
life  left  in  it,  carried  along  the  high  road  on  its 
rude  litter,  borne  into  the  house  over  the  way — the 
happy  home  of  the  morning  now  darkened  and 
made  desolate  by  that  sudden,  fearful  stroke  of 
doom — the  mother,  bereaved  in  a  manner  so 
fearful,  of  her  only  child,  bending  over  it  in 
an  agony  of  woe  unutterable. 

"  And  I  might  have  been  the  one  the  bear 
attacked,  if  I  had  gone  with  them,  papa  mourn 
ing  over  his  dead  daughter,  his  heart  breaking 
with  the  thought  that  she'd  been  killed  in  the 
very  act  of  disobeying  him,"  thought  Lulm  "  I 


S18 

can  never,  never  be  thankful  enough  that  I 
didn't  do  it ;  that  God  helped  me  resist  th« 
temptation." 

A  hand  rested  lightly,  tenderly  on  her  head, 
and  she  started  up  to  find  her  father  standing 
by  her  side. 

She  threw  herself  into  his  arms,  and  as  he 
folded  her  close  to  his  heart,  hid  her  face  on  his 
breast,  sobbing  convulsively.  "  Oh,  papa,  it  is 
BO,  so  dreadful  !  so  terrible  !  " 

"Yes,"  he  said,  in  tones  tremulous  with  emo 
tion,  "  my  heart  aches  for  the  bereaved  parents. 
Oh,  thank  the  Lord  that  I  have  my  darling  safe 
in  my  arms  ! "  caressing  her  with  exceeding 
tenderness,  as  he  sat  down,  still  holding  her  fast 
as  a  treasure  he  would  suffer  no  earthly  power 
to  snatch  from  his  grasp.  "  You  were  not  with 
them  ?  " 

*'  No,  papa  ;  you  bade  me  stay  within  doors — 
at  least,  you  said  you  wanted  me  to — and  how 
could  I  disobey  such  a  dear,  kind  father  ?  Oh, 
I  couldn't,  though  I  wanted  to  go  very  badly  I 
And  if  I  had — oh,  I  might  have  been  the  one  to 
be  killed  in  that  dreadful  way  !  ** 

"  And  your  father  the  heart-broken  parent 
weeping  over  his  lost  treasure.  My  dear  child, 
I  think  you  will  never  regret  resisting  the  temp 
tation  to  disobey  the  father  who  loves  you  as 
his  life." 

"  Oh,  no,  I'm  sure  I  shall  not !    Papa,  what  » 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS          319 

food  thing  for  me  that  you  have  trained  me  to 
obedience,  for  otherwise  I  should  have  gone 
with  them  r  \  maybe  have  been  killed,  killed 
in  that  horrible  way  !  ~i  ou  didn't  say  1  musv 
stay  in  the  house— only  that  you  wanted  me  to — 
but  I  suppose  it  would  have  been  disobedience 
if  I'd  gone  ;  wouldn't  it  ?  " 

"  Yes ;  a  truly  obedient  child  will  not  go 
against  the  known  wishes  of  a  parent.  I  trusted 
my  daughter  loved  me  enough  to  obey  my 
slightest  wish,  so  did  not  think  it  necessary  to 
put  my  injunction  in  the  form  of  a  command. 
We  all  prefer  to  be  requested  rather  than 
ordered." 

"  But  I  have  really  learned  to  love  even  to  be 
ordered  by  you,  my  own,  own  dearest  father  \ " 
she  said,  creeping  closer  in  his  embrace. 

"  Had  I  been  quite  sure  of  that  it  would  have' 
saved  me  some  moments  of  great  alarm  and 
anxiety,"  he  said. 

She  looked  up  inquiringly,  and  he  went  OK. 
"  As  our  party  came  into  town,  on  the  side  op 
posite  to  that  where  this  dreadful  accident  oc 
curred,  a  man  hailed  us  with  the  news  that  some 
little  girls,  out  gathering  berries,  had  been 
attacked  by  a  bear,  one  of  them  killed,  and 
others  badly  hurt. 

"That  last  was  a  mistake,  as  we  presently 
learned,  but,  oh,  the  pang  that  shot  through  ray 
heart  with  the  sudden  fear  that  my  dear  littlfl 


520          ELSIE  AND   THE  RAYMONDS. 

daughter  might  be  among  the  injured,  perhaps 
•even  the  slain  one.  How  I  wished  that  I  had 
positively  forbidden  you  to  lea''  the  house  at 
all  in  my  absence  1 " 

"  But  even  then  you  couldn't  have  been  sure 
that  I  wasn't  with  those  girls,  because  there 
have  been  times  when  I've  disobeyed  your  most 
positive  commands,"  she  said,  in  a  remorseful 
tone. 

Her  heart  leaped  with  joy  at  his  answering 
words.  "  But  you  have  been  so  perfectly  obed 
ient  for  a  long  time  now,  that  I  have  come  to 
have  gi-eat  confidence  in  your  careful  observance 
of  any  order  from  me  to  do  or  not  to  do." 

Max,  who  had  lingered  in  the  street  trying  to 
learn  all  the  particulars  of  the  sad  occurrence, 
which  was  the  absorbing  subject  of  thought  and 
speech  with  every  one  for  the  time  being,  now 
came  quietly  in,  looking  thoughtful  and  dis 
tressed. 

"  They  say  she's  terribly  crushed  and  man 
gled,"  he  said,  half-chokingly.  "  Oh,  Lu,  what  a 
fright  papa  and  I  had,  thinking  it  might  be 
you!" 

"  But  I  could  have  been  spared  much  better 
than  poor  Edith,"  she  said  ;  "  she  was  an  only 
child,  and  papa  would  have  four  still  left  if  he 
lost  only  me." 

"  I  should  not  know  how  to  spare  you  o.  a»"* 
one  of  my  darlings,"  responded  her  father,  in 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.         321 

moved  tones,  smoothing  her  hair  with  tender, 
caressing  hand,  and  kissing  her  on  cheek  and 
lip  and  brow. 

"I'm  glad  we're  almost  ready  to  go  away 
from  here,"  remarked  Max,  "  We've  been  hav 
ing  a  merry,  happy  time,  but  it  will  seem  very 
sad  after  this." 

"  When  do  we  go,  papa  ?  "  asked  Lulu. 

"I  have  set  day  after  to-morrow,"  he  an 
swered.  "  But  while  we  are  here,  let  us  strive 
rather  to  sympathize  in  the  grief  and  suffering 
of  those  so  sorely  bereaved  than  to  be  thinking 
oJ  ourselves  and  our  own  enjoyment.  The 
Bibi?  bids  us  weep  with  those  that  weep,  as  well 
as  to  rejoice  with  those  that  do  rejoice  ! " 

The  captain  earnestly  strove  to  carry  out  that 
teaching,  and  nothing  was  omitted  or  neglected 
that  he  could  do  to  show  his  sympathy  with 
Edith's  heart-broken  parents  ;  or  with  Marian, 
who  grieved  sorely  over  the  loss  of  her  friend— 
snatched  from  her  in  so  sad  a  manner — and  the 
news  that  Lulu,  to  whom  she  had  become 
warmly  attached,  was  soon  to  leave  Minersville, 
probably  never  to  return. 

Lulu  had  been  seized  with  a  longing  for  the 
dear  ones  at  home — especially  Gracie — and  ex 
pected  to  feel  only  joy  in  turning  her  back  upon 
the  little  Western  town  in  which  she  Lad  so« 
journed  so  pleasantly  for  the  last  four  week*, 
but,  when  the  time  came,  found  she  was  a  share* 


322          ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

to  some  extent  in  the  grief  at  parting,  that  set 
Marian  to  weeping  bitterly. 

"  Don't  cry  so,  Marian,"  Lulu  said,  with  emo 
tion.  "  I  didn't  think  you  cared  so  much  for 
me." 

"Oh,  I  love  you  almost  as  if  you  were  my 
sister  ! "  sobbed  Marian,  "  and  it  nearly  breaks 
my  heart  to  think  I  shall  never,  never  see  you 
again." 

"  But  perhaps  you  may.  Isn't  it  possible, 
papa  ? "  and  Lulu  turned  inquiringly  to  her 
father. 

"  Yes,"  he  said;  "  I  may  be  visiting  im*  prop 
erty  here  again  one  of  these  days,  Ana  in  that 
case  will  be  very  likely  to  bring  my  eldest 
daughter  along. 

"  And  Marian,  my  good  girl,  if  ever  you  should 
be  in  need  of  a  friend,  remember  that  Captain 
Raymond  will  be  glad  to  do  you  any  kindness 
in  his  power." 

Marian  and  her  mother  both  thanked  him 
with  earnest  gratitude  ;  both  felt  that  the  day 
might  not  be  far  distant  when  they  would  stand 
in  sore  need  of  his  friendly  offices,  and  with  the 
knowledge  they  had  gained  of  his  character  in 
the  last  few  weeks  of  daily  intercourse,  they 
could  not  doubt  the  sincerity  of  his  offer. 

But  the  train  that  was  to  carry  the  Ray 
monds  on  their  eastward  way  was  nearly  due  ; 
the  rest  of  the  good-byes  were  hastily  said,  and 


ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS.         33S 

in  a  few  moments  they  were  seated  in  the  can 
and  speeding  onward. 

It  Avas  a  beautiful  summer  morning,  and  the 
spirits  of  the  children  soon  rose  to  such  a  height 
that  they  must  find  vent  in  chat  and  laughter. 

"  Papa,"  exclaimed  Lulu,  "  you  actually 
haven't  told  us  where  we  are  going  next ! w 

"  To  the  sea-shore,  as  the  end  of  this  journey.** 

"  But  that's  very  indefinite  ;  for  the  sea-shore 
of  our  big  country  is  a  long,  long  strip,"  she 
said  laughingly. 

"  So  it  is  ;  but  can't  you  trust  me  to  take  yon 
to  a  pleasant  part  of  it  ?'' 

"  Oh,  yes,  sir,  yee,  indeed  !  and  Pm  always 
glad  to  go  anywhere  with  you,"  resting  her 
cheek  affectionately  against  his  shoulder  and 
squeezing  his  hand  in  both  of  hers. 

"  And  we  are  perfectly  willing  to  wait  for  the 
information  till  you  are  ready  to  give  it,  sir," 
added  Max. 

''Good  children,"  the  captain  said,  smiling 
approvingly  upon  them.  "I  had  thought  of 
giving  you  a  surprise,  but  have  no  objection  to 
telling  you  now,  that  we  have  taken  again  the 
cottages  we  occupied  the  first  summer  after  my 
marriage  to  your  Mamma  Vi,  and  that  she  and 
Gracie  and  the  babies— the  Ion  and  Fairview 
people  too— are  already  there  waiting  for  us  to 
join  them.  Are  you  satisfied  with  the  arrrange- 
ment,  my  dears  ?  " 


324         ELSIE  AND  THE  RAYMONDS. 

M I  am,  perfectly,  papa,"  Max  replied. 

"  And  I,  too,"  said  Lulu.  "  Oh,  I  do  think  it 
vill  be  very  pleasant  to  spend  a  while  there 
again  !  And  I  hope  I'll  be  a  great  deal  better 
child  to  you  than  I  was  before,  dear  papa,"  she 
whispered  in  his  ear,  her  arm  about  his  neck. 

"  Dear  child  ! "  was  all  he  said  in  reply,  but 
the  accompanying  look  and  smile  spoke  volume* 
Of  fatherly  love  and  confidence, 


tBB  BNIX 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

Los  Angeles 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


JUL1     1957 


D  L9-25m-9,'47(A5618)444 


THE  LIBRARY 
UNIVERSITY  OF  CAUPORNUl 


PS  Finley  - 

1672       Elsie  and  the 
FSand     Raymonds. 


000  033  302 


PS 

1672 

F5and 


